Rewound - Back to Arcadia Bay
by MaBre85
Summary: [Sequel to Rewound - Visions] After three long months, Max returns to Arcadia Bay to reunite with Chloe. But life is still everything else than simple. Besides Max's Visions, a lot of new experiences and obstacles await the two girls. And again, Chloe and Max realize that they need each other to protect themselves from everything the world's throwing at them.
1. Prologue

**Author's Notes:**

 **Many of you wished for it and here it is: the sequel to Rewound - Visions!**

 **Originally I wanted to take a short break from this story, but then I had a lot of ideas and got addicted again. So, mainly, I'll work on this one and try to work on my other stories at the same time.**

 **As for my new story: it's gonna be the sci-fi story with Max and Chloe. First two chapters and the prologue are already written, but I'm unsure if I should publish it right away. We'll see.**

 **And, as always, every review is very much appreciated!**

 **Now enjoy!**

* * *

 **Rewound 2 – Back to Arcadia Bay**

Prologue

 _A blue butterfly. Chloe. A doe. The lighthouse. Butterfly and doe dancing around each other. The doe disappears, the butterfly remains._

 _Beepbeepbeep…Beepbeepbeep…_

Still half asleep, Max's hand searched randomly for the beeping phone on her nightstand. After some moments and a fallen, luckily empty, can of soda the brunette girl managed to tap the display, silencing the uncomfortable sound.

Her next target was the remote for the stereo. She pushed the big play-button and some fast paced music chimed from the speakers, helping her to fully wake up.

Slowly, the 13 years old girl opened her eyes. Although it was still dark outside, her room was constantly enlightened by a bright nightlight, because since the incident in the park, she was unable to fall a sleep when it was dark. She turned to one side and looked at the bunch of pictures that decorated the wall right beside her bed. Every one of these photos had one thing in common; they all showed Chloe, Max's girlfriend.

"Good morning, Chlo!" she spoke softly with a warm smile. "I had a beautiful dream about you, a doe and a butterfly." She closed her eyes for a short moment and inhaled deeply, letting joy flood her whole body. "Can't wait to see you again after such a long time!"

It knocked on her room door. "Max? Are you up?" Vanessa's voice chimed from the other side.

"Yes, mom!" the young girl answered, stood up and took her instant cam.

' _One happy morning-selfie on this wonderful day!_ '

With big smile on her face, she pressed the trigger of the cam. It clicked and the new photo emerged from the cam. Max took it, shook it just out of a habit and placed the picture by her Journal.

' _Okay Max, hit the shower and have a nice breakfast. The ride to Arcadia Bay is gonna be long and exhausting._ ' she thought, and made her way to the bathroom.

Like every morning, Max stripped down her pajamas and looked at the reflection of her freckled body in the mirror.

' _A_ _few months ago I would've found myself ugly, but now…I don't know…now that I know that Chloe likes me the way I am, I made my peace with it. Still, I can't imagine how it would feel to be touched by Chloe…or even to touch her._ '

' _I hope Chloe doesn't mind that I cut my hair a bit shorter.'_ she continued her thought and brushed with her fingers through her short-cut brown hair with a now permanent orange dyed streak.

Her gaze suddenly fixed on the scar at the left side of her chest. Negative feelings shadowed her good mood for a few seconds and she had to inhale deeply to hold back some tears.

' _It still freaks me out to see this fucking scar. It'll always remind me that I was so close to lose everything…even my life. I can never let this happen again! Luckily I hadn't had any other Visions so far. And if another one comes up again, I'll be at Chloe's side to protect her!'_

Max entered the shower and washed the remaining drowsiness with a stream of warm water away. After she'd dried herself off, she brushed her teeth and went straight back to her room to put on some clothes.

' _Let's see what armor I'm gonna wear today…hmm…'_

The young girl decided to wear a simple blue jeans and a purple shirt. Before she closed the drawer, her gaze fell on a black piece of garment.

' _Mom got me a bra a few weeks ago, but…well, I appreciate the effort and don't wanna be ungrateful, but actually I have not much to put in there. I tried it on once, but it felt so uncomfortable. Maybe some other time, not today.'_

Last but not least, Max took the neckless with the three bullets she got from Chloe, and put it around her neck. A wide smirk was formed on her lips as she checked her appearance once more in the mirror.

"Badass!"

"Ma-ax! Your breakfast's ready!" Vanessa's voice chimed from downstairs.

"Comiiing!" Max answered and made her way downstairs into the living room, a smile on her lips the whole time. "Morning!" she said with a happy voice and sat down at the dining table, instantly putting some strawberry jam on her toast.

"Good morning, munchkin!" Ryan Caulfield gave back with a wide smile and sipped on his coffee. "Looks like someone's in a good mood."

"Mh-hm." the small girl gave back with a nod while she chewed on her breakfast. "Can't wait to finally see Chloe again!"

Vanessa now entered the room, two cups in her hand. "Good morning, sweetie!" she said, placed a cup with tea in front of Max and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Had a good night's sleep?"

"Yeah, I had a cool dream about a butterfly, a doe and Chloe."

"Oooh, that's so cute!" Max's mom said with a soft sigh and took her place at the table.

"Mooom! It was just a dream!" Max replied to her mom, rolling with her eyes.

"Sometimes, dreams will come true, Maxine…I'm sorry, it's just Max, right?"

' _Yeah, don't need a lecture on that dream-come-true-topic. I'm just glad that my Visions seemed to have stopped.'_

"I-it's okay, mom. You can still call me Maxine, if you want. I don't mind."

' _Wowser, since the incident, mom has changed. She finally accepted me the way I am…even my relationship with Chloe, and I feel that she means it. But sometimes…sometimes she's just overdoing it.'_

"Have you packed everything?" her dad's voice chimed, bringing the brunette girl back from her thoughts.

"Yup, everything's prepped 'n' ready!"

"Even your braces?" Vanessa added, giving Max a stern gaze.

' _Okay, some things never change. Ugh!'_

"Yes, mom!"

"And don't forget to wear them, or else you'll get a fixed one! I already called Dr. Smith and…"

"I said yes, mom!" Max interrupted her mother in annoyance. "Geez, I have a girlfriend now and don't wanna look like an ugly gnome!"

"I know…" Vanessa sighed. "Sorry for being too overprotective again, I…"

"Mom…" Max began and touched her mom's hand softly. "It's fine. I'm gonna be fine, okay?"

A single tear rolled down Vanessa's face as she nodded. "I know…" she whispered.

* * *

After the early breakfast, Ryan packed Max's duffle bag into the car and the Caulfield family drove to King Street Station.

The train to Portland was already waiting on the platform, ready for departure. Ryan, Vanessa and Max stood in front of it. Ryan took his daughter into a tight embrace, patting her on her back a few times.

"Take good care, kiddo! Send us some pictures from time to time. And don't forget…"

"…no shenanigans." she completed his sentence, broke the hug and gave him a warm smile. Then she turned to her mom, who was already sobbing.

"Oh my baby-girl!" Vanessa whined out and pulled her daughter in for a tight hug. "I'm so sorry for everything that happened! I love you, Maxine!"

"I love you, too, mom!" Max answered with a quiet voice, her eyes welling up. "And I forgive you!"

Instantly Vanessa broke the hug, glancing into her daughter's blue eyes deeply. Her lips trembled even more, before she lost every bit of composure she'd tried to hold up. This time, she was crying out of relief; out of joy; because, finally, Max had forgiven her. Finally she was forgiven those hurtful word she'd said to Max and Chloe at Christmas Eve. Words, that almost lead to Chloe's and her own daughter's death.

One last time the Caulfield family stood together in a big embrace. All were now shedding tears. Tears of hurt, joy, comfort and fear; the fear of loss.

As the voice from PA told them that Max's train was about to depart, they parted.

Wiping away the wet lines from her cheeks, Max grabbed her duffle bag and walked to the entrance of the train.

"Good bye, little munchkin!" Vanessa said with a shivering voice. "Always take care, okay?"

"And say hello to Chloe and Joyce from us." Ryan added.

Max just nodded, almost unable to speak. "I will. Mom, dad…I love you!"

The doors closed with a hissing sound, now physically separating the Caulfield family. With a jolt the train began to move. Max watched how the distance to her parents was increasing more and more, until they were out of sight.

With a feeling of numbness, Max searched for a seat, put her bag in a luggage rack and sat down. There she was, looking out of the window, letting the landscape pass. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying suppress the almost overwhelming sadness.

' _Okay, Max, calm down! It sucks to leave my folks behind, but I finally gonna see and kiss and…feel Chloe again.'_

Thinking about this upcoming reunion with her girlfriend painted a warm smile on her face, which was soon replaced by a mischievous grin as her phone chimed and she read the message.

[Chloe]: _wakey wakey, maxi. ur gf needs attention!_

' _And the best thing is, she doesn't even know that I'm coming.'_


	2. Chapter 1: True Dreams

**Chapter 1: True Dreams**

Country-music chimed from the speakers of the car. Slowly, Chloe opened her eyes and saw that she was sitting in the backseat. She knew that song, and she hated it.

There was a time when she loved this kind of music; a time she sang along with her dad, driving her mom nearly insane. But these good old times died almost 6 months ago along with her father.

Now, this music depressed Chloe, because it reminded her of these old times.

"Hey, why the long face, kiddo?", William Price's voice chimed from the driver's seat.

Chloe answered with a shrug of her shoulders, her gaze dropped. First tears were rolling down her cheeks.

"Y'know, even as a child you were so strong. Never gave up. Why now?"

"Because you're gonna die again.", the blonde girl replied with a weak, shivering voice.

"I am?", William said with some slight amusement.

Hearing that he didn't take it serious, Chloe glared at her father with a furious gaze. "Yes, you do, because you fucking die every fucking time I have this fucking dream!", she blurted out.

"How do you know it will happen this time again?", her dad spoke, staying calm.

"Why should it be different this time?", she answered with bitterness, crossed her arms and looked out of the window.

"Chloe, it's just a dream. Your dream!"

"So?"

"Never judge the dream before it's over."

"But I already know the end. What isn't there to judge?"

Now William turned around and looked over his shoulder directly at his daughter, not even caring about to give the street any further attention. "Munchkin, this is YOUR dream. YOU are the director."

Chloe was now answering her father's gaze. Her bitterness replaced by curiosity. "What do you mean?"

"Chloe, it is your decision if I'm gonna die here or not."

"But it doesn't change the fact that you're still dead in RL."

"No. But isn't it still worth a shot?"

The loud blaring of a truck's horn could be heard in the distance. Panic engulfed Chloe's heart.

"B-but how? How can I do this?"

"Just focus and wish for it.", her father said nonchalantly.

The horn blared again, this time louder.

"What?! I…"

"Stay calm and focus. Imagin' it. Wish for it with all your heart!"

Again, the horn chimed. Chloe's voice and lips trembled.

"Dad, I…I can't."

"Chloe," William's determined tone let the young girl look into her father's eyes deeply, "Of all the people in the world, you're the only one who can do it!"

Chloe's dad now turned around again and kept on driving like nothing's about to happen. The trucks horn was now deafening loud.

Her breathing became shallow and rapid. Her panic increased. Her hands clawed into the seat. Until she let it all out in a big scream. "DAAAAD!"

Tires squealed and Chloe almost flew against the front seat, as William hit the breaks hard and the car came to a sudden halt. The semi-truck rushed past in front of the vehicle, missing it merely by a few feet.

"What. An. Asshole.", said William, "You okay back there, kiddo?"

It took Chloe some time to calm down enough to perform even a nod. "Wh-what just happened?"

Now her dad turned to his daughter again with a warm smile on his lips. "Well, looks like you saved my life."

"N-no, I…it's just a dream…I…"

"Chloe, there are people out there who really need your help, especially Max."

"I-I know, but…she's still in Seattle and every day just sucks because she's so far away…out of reach."

"Carpe diem."

"What?!"

"It means _seize the day_."

"I know what it means, dad! I even know this fucking movie. But what the freakin' hell are you wanna tell me?"

"For you, every day is like this dream. You already say that it sucks even though it's not even over, yet. Chloe, try to live each day until the end and you'll see that everything's gonna be easier."

Static noise chimed from the radio, and from one moment to the other the still playing country song was replaced by one of Chloe's favorite rock songs, played on a acoustic guitar and sung by Max's voice.

"Hey, I know this song!", Chloe said in surprise and hummed the melody.

"Max is a real talent, isn't she?", William mentioned and pointed outside the car.

Chloe followed his gaze and saw Max sitting on a bench with her guitar, playing this very song. Instantly, Chloe felt this amazing warm feeling of love running through her whole body, painting a big, warm smile on her face.

"You truly love her, do you?"

"Like crazy!"

"Well, why don't you just go to her?"

"Dad, it's just a dream."

"And sometimes dreams come true." The door opened magically and, after some hesitation, Chloe left the car. "I need to get going. Take good care of Joyce, Max and especially yourself!"

"Will do. I love you, dad! And…uhm…thanks for the ride!"

"I love you, too, kiddo! Say hello to Max from me, willya?"

"Definitely!", she answered with a wry smile, but as she turned around to make her way towards her girlfriend, Max was gone, though the music was still playing.

"What the…?! Max? Dad, did you…?"

As Chloe looked over her shoulder, the car and her dad were gone, too.

"Max? Dad?", the blonde girl shouted into the more emptying landscape. Her vision blurred, while the music got louder and darkness surrounded her.

* * *

With a groan, Chloe covered her sweaty face with her hands. Step by step she woke up from her restless sleep.

' _I hate those fucking dreams!'_

She opened her deep-blue eyes and stared at the ceiling of her room for some moments, trying to calm down from her recent dream. The music in the background stopped and a few seconds later the next track from Max's CD chimed from the speakers of the programmed stereo.

' _Gosh, I love to be woken by Maxi's sweet voice. Damn, I need to talk with her before I go to work.',_ Chloe thought and took her new phone out from under her pillow.

As she unlocked it, a picture of her and Max appeared on the screen. "Morning, my little geek! Hope you slept better than I did.", the blonde with the blue-dyed streak whispered, before she begun to write a message.

[Chloe]: _wakey wakey, maxi. ur gf needs attention!_

She gazed at her phone for a while, hoping to receive an immediate answer, but her phone stayed silent and no text appeared.

' _Hmm, Maxi must've turned off her phone or just needs hours to wake up. What a sleepyhead! Well, I better get up and get ready or mom's gonna freak!'_

"Chloe," Joyce's voice chimed through the house. "we need to get going, so move it!"

' _Aaaand here we go.'_

"Coming, mom!", she answered and got up, letting her gaze wander around her room.

The walls were mainly decorated with band posters, as well as pictures of her and Max.

' _Is it unhealthy to be obsessed with Max? Hell no! It's the best thing in the world!'_

' _Shit, stop procrastinating, Chloe, and get dressed or mom will really flip her shit!'_

After she'd stripped off her pajamas and rummaged through the drawers and closets, her sight caught the big pile of clothes in the corner.

' _Fuck! Clothes, clothes everywhere, but not one single clean pantie to wear. Ugh!',_ Chloe thought with rolling eyes and started to sniff on some of the scattered underwear, until she found one that didn't smell that bad and put it on.

' _Since mom took over the Two Whales, she's hardly able to clean the house…or my clothes. Ugh, maybe it's time for me to become the cleaning woman here…yay!'_

Then she took a bra, a top, a pair of – hopefully matching – socks, one of her ripped blue jeans and a uniform that hung over her chair. The blonde put on the garments and looked at herself in the mirror, scrunching up her nose.

' _Nothing against the Two Whales' new uniform – I actually like black and blue – but I hate that mom forces me to wear an apron!'_

"Chloe, what's taking you so long?", Joyce yelled throughout the house again.

"Coming!", the young girl answered, took a slight detour into the bathroom to brush her teeth and headed downstairs.

"Good morning, sweetheart!", Joyce said happily, embraced her daughter and placed a peck on her cheek.

"Ewww, mom! I don't like mush in the morning."

Breaking the hug, Joyce gave her daughter a slight push. "Oh really? If I'd be Max, you'd appreciate it."

"That's…something different.", Chloe answered with a blush and took a seat at the dining table, while her mom returned into the kitchen to finish their breakfast.

A wry smile was formed on Chloe's lips as she watched her mom, who was humming a song.

' _It's nice to see mom happy again. After dad died, she'd always been so stern and sad. I know she tried to be strong for the both of us, but…it must've been hard for her. The debts, work, the fight with the insurance company, the shit that happened at school, Christmas…ugh! And I didn't help her that much, too.'_

' _Luckily, as soon as we threatened those insurance-fuckers with legal actions, they gave us the money. It was more than enough to pay the house, get a new car and to buy the Two Whales diner from mom's old boss, who wanted to retire. Originally, the money was supposed to be for my college-fund, but…mom always dreamt about owning the diner and I wanted her to be happy. I have Max to be happy, so why shouldn't she have the diner? I'm scholarship-material anyway.'_

"Eggs 'n' bacon for my little girl!"

"I'm not little, mom." Chloe answered, rolling with her eyes.

Joyce put two plates with eggs and bacon on the table and sat down. "But still, you'll always be my little girl. Now eat up, sweetie, you'll need it!"

* * *

Chloe looked at her phone and read the same messages she'd sent to Max, again and again, somehow hoping that she might've overlooked a reply. But this was merely a hope of desperation.

"Chloe, stop eyeballing your phone already! The kitchen needs to be as clean as possible, before lunch-rush-hour starts.", Joyce chided her daughter as she entered the kitchen.

Without an answer, the blonde girl put the phone back into her pocket with a loud and sad sigh.

Seeing that something bothered her, Joyce came closer and gave Chloe a soft embrace. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Max hasn't answered any of my texts, yet."

"Maybe she's busy."

Chloe freed herself from the hug and shook her head. "No, that's not like her. She…she's never done something like this before. I'm…", she took a deep inhale, while her eyes were starting to well up, "I'm worried, mom."

"Chloe," her mom began and touched the girl's shoulder softly, "Max is fine, trust me. The best thing you could do right now is to distract yourself with some work! How about taking the orders from Booth 2?"

"But mo-om…you know I hate waiting tables!"

"I know…", Joyce replied nonchalantly with one hand resting on her hip. "That's why I want you to do it, 'cause otherwise you'll never get used to it. Besides, I'm your boss, so get that behind in gear!"

"Yes, oh mighty diner-boss!"

"And do it without the snark!"

"Yes, mom!" Chloe said, rolling with her eyes again. She took pen and paper from her apron and strolled over to booth number two, without any motivation or giving her destination even a glimpse.

She reached the booth and, after letting out a big sigh, Chloe spoke with a monotone voice, just staring at her notepad. "Yo, welcome at the Two Whales! What can I get ya?"

"How about some more motivation and a big kiss, you dork!", a quite too familiar voice answered.

Instantly, Chloe dropped everything. Her heart began to race and her breathing became shallow as an indescribable big, hot wave of emotions rushed through the strawberry-blonde girl's body. Raising her gaze, Chloe looked into a pair of sweet blue doe-eyes; eyes, which made her forget everything around her.

Without any hesitation or second thought, Chloe jumped at Max, tackling her onto the seat of the booth. Hot tears of joy and relief dripped from her eyes as their lips met after such a long time. She enjoyed the kiss; savored every moment their lips were connected.

After breaking the kiss, Chloe and Max still looked at each other for some time, both wet lines on their faces.

"I missed you so much!", Chloe said with a quiet, shivering voice and a sniff, brushing over her girlfriend's freckled face.

"I missed you, too, Chlo!", Max replied, cupping the blonde's cheek with a warm smile.

But instead of leaning into her girlfriend's hand, Chloe pushed herself up and gave Max a slight agitated glare. "Why didn't you answer any of my texts? I was worried sick about you!"

Averting the blonde girl's gaze in shame, Max now lifted herself up into a sitting position. "I-I'm sorry, I…I just wanted it to be a full surprise and…I'm so sorry!"

Almost expecting to get some more guilt tripping, the smaller girl was completely overwhelmed as Chloe wrapped her arms around her neck for another tight embrace, rocking her softly.

"I'm just glad that you're okay, Maxi! But please, don't do that again. Not after everything that happened."

"Promised!"

Now Chloe got up and took a seat on the opposite side of the table. "Not that I wanna be ungrateful, but weren't you supposed to stay in Seattle for another two months?"

"Yeah, but…", Max began and sighed deeply, "Chloe, Seattle's awful. Since the mug I…" She took another deep inhale to suppress the need to freak out. "Damn, Chlo, I can't even look at the freakin' skyline anymore without getting a panic attack! And I missed you so much! And…I just wanted to wait until I had my final checkup at the hospital and then get the heck out of there."

"Max," Chloe said softly with a warm smile, grabbing the smaller girl's hand, "I'm just glad that you're back!"

"Well look at that, my two favorite girls are finally reunited again!", Joyce cheered as she approached the booth with two platters.

"Hi, Joyce!"

"Hello, darling!", Joyce replied, put the plates, filled with fries and Burgers, on the table and took Max in for a hug. "How are you doing?"

"Okay…I guess.", the smaller girl answered with a shrug.

"That's good to hear. Now dig in, you two!"

"Mom, can I get the rest of my shift off?", Chloe asked her mom with a pleading sight.

"Lilly's already taking over, so you're free to go."

"Wait, Lilly? But isn't she supposed to…", Chloe stopped her track of words, changing her gaze between Max and her mom, "You knew it, didn't ya?"

Both, Joyce and Max chuckled as they exchanged some glimpses.

"I did, and I made sure that you two can spend the rest of the weekend together. Now, don't give me the stinky eye, eat up and take a stroll with Max through the Bay!", the blonde woman said with a strict voice and left for the kitchen.

Max already had started to chew on her Burger, while Chloe was still busy wrapping her mind around everything.

' _I can't believe it. Maxi's back and I had no fucking idea. Maybe dad was right, you shouldn't judge the day before it's over. And this day just turned out to be really awesome!'_

"Mmh…arem't you 'ungry?" the brunette girl mumbled with a full mouth, interrupting Chloe's thoughts.

A big mischievous grin was formed by Chloe's lips as she leaned in. "You're so amazingly cute!"

Max gulped down the food in her mouth hastily, almost chocking on it. "Uhm…th-thanks…uh…"

"Still not used to hear it, aren't ya?"

"N-no…but I try, it's…it's just not that easy."

"I hear ya. Just take your time, okay?"

The younger girl lowered her gaze, now being in deep thoughts, too. „Chloe, why do you even love me?"

Taken by surprise by this question, Chloe now choked on her piece of Burger she'd just put in her mouth, coughed and splattered it all over the table. Seeing her girlfriend in distress, Max quickly changed seats and patted her back.

"Sorry!", the blonde said, while catching some breath. Then both sat there for a while, until Chloe began to answer Max's question. "Despite all those worlds throughout the universe, why's earth the one hosting humans? Why were we born and raised in the same town? Why did we meet? Max, I can't just give you a simple answer, but…damn, I just love you!"

"But why? I'm not beautiful, and actually kinda pretty boring and…"

Cupping her freckled face with one hand, Chloe brushed over Max's cheek and gave her an encouraging smile. "Stop it right there, Maxi! Your not boring and…ugh, fuck! Every time I see your cute freckled face and your stunning eyes I get lost. Every time I hear your voice I'll never want you to shut up. Every time I smell your scent I wish it to be my perfume. Damn, if I could I'd finally love to taste…" Instantly, Chloe became beet-red, averting Max's intense gaze. Her hands were shaking and breathing became hard. She paused for a moment. "Sorry, I-I need to hit the shitter.", she said hastily, stood up and rushed for the Two Whales' bathroom.

There she stood, leaning with her hands over the sink. Chloe looked at her reflection in the mirror and saw that her face was blushed intensively from the almost burning heat inside her body, which was accompanied by a tingling feeling.

' _Dammit, hit the breaks, Price! Maxi's so not ready for this. Just keep cool, don't make any sex-related comments or jokes, and if the pressure gets too high, use your dirty imagination and your left hand! Easypeasy!'_

"Easypeasy.", she muttered with a big sigh, splashed some cold water into her face and checked her appearance in the mirror once more, recognizing that her blush had almost vanished.

Now freshened up, Chloe left the bathroom and walked through the now filling diner towards the booth where Max and Joyce were now talking.

"Yo Maxi, wanna bail?"

"Chloe, hold it right there!", Max suddenly spoke out, making Chloe to stop immediately. The younger girl took out her instant-cam and aimed at her girlfriend, who, after the first surprise, now understood and began to pose with a smirk.

The shutter clicked and the picture emerged from the camera with a whirring sound.

"Lemme see!" Chloe said as Max took the photo and both girls looked at it.

"Wowser! I always wanted to have a pic from you in your working clothes!"

"Really, why?"

"Because you look amazing in them. You can clearly see that Joyce chose the new colors just for you."

"You did?", the blonde girl asked her mom with eyes wide open.

"Of course, hon'," Joyce answered with a smile, "Changing the colors was the least I could do after you helped to fulfill my dream."

"Well…gee, thanks, mom!"

"Nothing to thank for, sweetie. Nothing to thank for. And now I suggest that you and Max go outside and enjoy this nice weather." Then, Joyce took Chloe in for another hug.

"Mo-om!"

"I know, I know. No mush.", Chloe's mom replied and broke the hug. "That's what Max is here for now."

Glimpsing at Max, who was blushing and looking at her feet, Chloe began to blush, too. Again, she had this burning, tingling feeling.

' _Shit! I need some distraction and fresh air, stat!'_

"C'mon, I know exactly where we can hang out.", Chloe said, grabbed Max's hand and dragged her to the front door.

"B-bye, Joyce!", the younger girl said hastily, completely surprised.

Both girls left the diner, leaving a smirking, head shaking Joyce behind.

* * *

The smell of the forest, mixed with the salty air of the nearby ocean was something that always brought back childhood memories of this special place. Chloe and Max loved to play in the forest around the lighthouse. Remembering these days painted a warm smile on Chloe's lips.

"Gosh, I almost forgot how awesome this place is.", said Max, took aim with her cam and took another photo, "Can't even remember the last time I took that much nature shots."

Seeing that her most precious girlfriend was enjoying herself, sent a warm feeling of joy through Chloe's body, which let her smile grow wider. "See, told ya! The perfect place to hang out."

"Best. Idea. Ever!" Without any warning, Max jumped forward, wrapped her arms around Chloe's neck, tiptoed and placed a long kiss on the blonde's lips.

Both girls gazed into their eyes deeply, after they'd broken the kiss.

' _Damn, I missed her so much. These eyes, this cute face, these lips. It's so freakin' good to feel her again'_ , Chloe thought, brushing over Max's freckled cheek. She leaned in once more and placed another long kiss on the smaller girls lips.

Right away, Chloe knew that something about this kiss was different. It felt more intense; more intimate. And as something brushed over her lips softly, the taller girl backed away and stared at Max.

"Whoa! What…was that? Was that your tongue?!", the blonde asked with furrowed eyebrows.

Max just stood there, playing with her hands behind her back, gaze fixed on the ground. "M-maybe…" she answered shyly with a wry, insecure smile.

"Maybe?"

"Chloe,", Max began, took Chloe's hands and looked into her deep-blue eyes once more. "I-I think I…I think I'm ready to…to take the next step in our relationship."

Silence occurred between the two girls, only broken by the one or other singsonging bird and the whisper of the wind.

"I-I mean…uhm…o-only if you're ready, too. B-but if not, we don't need to…"

"Hell yes!" Chloe suddenly blurted out with a joy-filled voice and instantly locked lips with her girlfriend again.

She closed her eyes and pressed Max's body closer. Her hands were drawing lines on the brunette girl's back, and once more she felt this slight brush on her lips. But this time she didn't back away. This time, Chloe parted her lips, too, and let the tip of her tongue wander over Max's soft lips, until they finally met. Cautiously, their tongue tips touched, and moved around each other in soft, partially clumsy, circles.

For Chloe, this was like a dream coming true. For some time now, she'd wished to take the next step. She knew that Max needed more time to get comfortable with the fact that she and Chloe would, one day, become more intimate. Especially, because Max was always feeling so insecure about herself. Taking this first big step must've cost the younger girl a lot of courage and Chloe did more than just appreciate it. She didn't take it for granted. She wanted make sure that Max would always feel safe and, eventually, would accept who she really is.

Slowly, their lips separated. Both were breathing heavily, feeling each others warm exhales on their skin. Though it has merely been a second since the kiss, Chloe already missed the warmth of her girlfriend's soft lips; the tingling sensation when their tongues touched; the taste the blonde longed for some time now.

Max rested her head on her girlfriend's chest, while Chloe laid hers on her smaller girlfriend's head, softly, tightening the embrace even more.

Both stayed silent, not wanting to break this solemn quietness. No words were needed to know how much they loved each other.

"Your heart beats so fast, Chlo.", Max whispered softly.

"Well, duh, dummy! I just had my first awesome tongue-action with my little Maxi here.", was Chloe's quiet, half-chuckled reply, which was answered by Max with a scoff.

"It really was awesome! I even think I could get used to it."

"You think?"

This time, Max was the one who chuckled, before she took a deep inhale. "I love you so much, Chlo!"

"I love you, too, Maxi!"

* * *

"I fucking love this place!", Chloe yelled out in excitement as they reached the lighthouse. "The amazing view, the fresh air, the sound of the waves, crushing against the rocks. Just. Fucking. Amazing!"

Receiving no response, Chloe turned around and saw that Max was standing at the tree line, gaze dropped and arms wrapped around her body.

Completely concerned about her, Chloe bridged the distance between them in no time and instantly took Max into a soothing embrace.

"Hey, what's wrong, Maximus?"

"My dream,", Max spoke with a trembling voice, "Th-this is where I met her…where she told me that I should let you go."

"Who? Future-Max?"

Again, pressing her head against Chloe's chest, Max nodded and sniffed as first tears soaked the blonde's shirt. "Her voice…I-I can still hear it in my head, chiding me. I wanna fight it; suppress it; but…I can't ignore it."

"But it was probably just a dream, nothing more."

"No," Max said, shaking her head, "So far, all my Visions came true. Why should this dream be any different?"

"Because," Chloe began, broke the hug and entwined her fingers with Max's, "I'm still here. WE are still here. Together. You said it yourself, Future-Max can suck a dick."

Giving Chloe a slight push, Max backed a bit off and scrunched up her nose. "Eww, I didn't say that, and I doubt that any Max in any universe would ever even touch a dick."

"Yeah, you're right," Chloe snickered, "Max Caulfield will always be a lady-killer."

"No, 'cause it says _For Chloe Only_ on my body."

"Really?! Where?", Chloe mocked with a smirk.

Slowly, Max came closer, leaned in, placed a kiss on her cheek and whispered into her ear. "Be patient and you'll find out."

With a giggle, Max just moved on to the lighthouse, her insecurity completely forgotten. Chloe stayed behind, not saying a word, not moving a limb, just blushing deep-red because of the surprising tease.

It took the blonde some time to snap out of it. She now turned around and gazed at Max, who was taking photo after photo from everything that worth taking a picture of.

' _Sometimes I have the feeling that there are two Maxs in one body. One of them is the old, shy photo-geek, but the other one…is…different. Stronger. But somehow still my little Max. It's just strange.'_

As Max tried to bring an object into focus, she walked backwards, tripped over a stone and fell on her butt with a shriek.

' _Okay, no matter what, she'll always be Max Caulfield. My Max. My big crush. The one and only.',_ Chloe thought with a chuckle and a shaking head, _'I better head over there, before she falls off the cliff.'_

"Yo, need some help, Maxi?", the older girl said with a wry smile, walked over to Max and reached her a hand, which the smaller girl took thankfully.

"Thanks, Chlo!", the brunette spoke and brushed the dust off her butt, "Stupid stones!"

"C'mon, let's sit down a bit, 'kay?" With these words, Chloe embraced Max's shoulders and walked her to the nearby bench, where both sat down, eventually.

For a while, both girls just enjoyed the scenery, resting their bodies against each other. Chloe even closed her eyes to feel the vibes of nature even more. These were peaceful moments.

Back in the old days, Max and Chloe often used to just sit or lie down in silence, letting nature be their entertainer. During those moments, they mostly had talked about their future plans; how they wanted to take over the world. Childish phantasies, but also fond memories of a time, when reality hadn't caught up with them.

"I'm glad to see your mom's finally happy again.", Max suddenly spoke, breaking the peaceful silence.

"Mh-hm. She almost went crazy after she took over the diner. I think it helps her to cope all this shit."

"I'm proud of you, Chlo. You have such a good heart and make so many people happy."

"Actually, just two."

"Two can be seen as _many._ "

"Smartass!"

A warm breeze brushed over the two girls as another moment of quietness occurred.

"Chloe?"

"Hmm?"

"Back at the diner, why did you act this strange all of a sudden?"

' _Shit, I'd hoped she'd just let it drop. Well, looks like I've to come up with my universal explanation for bitchy and unusual behavior.'_

"Well…loss of blood, cramps, raging hormones, uterus on fire…I think you know the drill."

"Uhm…a-actually…I don't know the drill."

Chloe looked at Max completely stunned, only to receive a shyly smile and a shrug.

"You know I'm kind of a late bloomer."

"Max, you're not a late bloomer.", Chloe replied with a warm smirk, ruffling through her brunette hair, "You're perfect the way you are. What's the saying: good things need some time…or something."

"Cramps and blood doesn't sound that great."

"Yeah," Chloe scoffed, "It actually sucks ass! Mom always tried to convince me that it was something to be proud of, but…ugh, sometimes I hate being a girl."

"Really?! There was a time you wanted to be a princess on a unicorn, y'know?"

"Ugh, don't remind me of that. Being a pirate is way cooler!"

"Amen to that!"

With another sigh, Chloe wrapped one arm around Max's shoulder and pressed her closer. "I'm just so glad you're back, and tomorrow, we'll thrash Arcadia Bay!"


	3. Chapter 2: Pirates of Seven Trash Heaps

**Chapter 2: Pirates of the Seven Trash Heaps**

Sunday morning. A fresh breeze came from the open window and brushed over the young, brunette girl. She inhaled deeply and cuddled her face a bit deeper into the pillow, unwilling to wake up right away.

Drowsiness took over again and sent Max back into a light slumber, from which she only awoke, because someone was combing through her hair and placed a kiss on her neck.

"Wakey, wakey, Maxi!", Chloe whispered softly in her ear and placed another peck on her girlfriend's cheek. Then, her hand wandered from the brunette's head over her neck to the back, where it came to a halt.

Max's eyes shot open immediately as her body was pumped full of hormones and adrenaline. "Wh-what are you doing there, Chlo?"

"I'm just gonna make sure," Chloe spoke quietly and slowly, "that you are,", then her hand moved to the side of the younger girl's body. "FULLY AWAKE!", she suddenly yelled and tickled Max, who burst out into loud laughter, rolling back and forth.

"Ch-Chloe…s-stop…pee…I-I…need to pee!"

Chloe instantly stopped the tickle-attack. Both were breathing heavily and smiled at each other for some time, before their heads moved closer and their lips met for a long kiss.

Max's hands wandered over Chloe's back, softly, upwards to her neck, searching for a special spot. And as soon as she'd found this very spot, where it was possible to get even, she massaged it. With a loud shriek, the blonde began to spasm and laughed out loud, until both girls fell off the bed.

Lying on the ground, Max and Chloe stayed there for a while, giggling, their fingers intertwined.

"You know that this was a technical foul, do you?", Chloe suddenly spoke, poking Max in the side.

"Why?", the brunette replied with a wry smile, "Just because I know your only weak spot?"

"No, because you lured me into safety and then abused my trust."

"Pft, just admit that you were too stunned by my kissing and I caught you off guard."

Chloe glimpsed at her girlfriend for a moment and then turned away again. "Smartass!", she said and pouted.

"C'mon, Chlo. I take it as a compliment that I have this effect on you." Max touched Chloe's cheek softly, making the blonde to look at her. "I love you!"

Their lips met once again, and this time they stayed like this for a while, until Joyce's voice made them to stop.

"Chloe! Max! Breakfast's ready! And no dawdling, you two, I heard that you are already awake!"

"Well," Chloe groaned while she stretched her limbs, "We better get up or mom will freak. Wanna hit the bathroom first?"

"I-I don't mind if we both go. Y'know, it'd save us some time."

A mild blush appeared on Chloe's cheeks, but instead of showing the usual nervousness, the blonde just gave Max a wide smirk. "Nah, it's fine. You go and make yourself ready. I'm gonna hit the shower later today, 'cause our todays adventure's gonna get dirty!"

Hearing this more then ambiguous comment, painted Max's face instantly red, while she just looked stunned with eyes wide open.

"Awww, it's so cute when you're flustered. But get your little head out of the gutter! I didn't mean it that way. Now, let's get ready, Long Max Silver, 'cause your Captain wants to take you on an adventure to the unexplored regions of the Bays of Arrrrcadia!"

* * *

"C'mon, slowpoke, hurry up!" Chloe spoke loudly as she turned around and gazed at Max with crossed arms.

"Just wait a sec, will ya!" the younger girl responded, took a look through the viewfinder of her cam and made a photo, "I've never been here before. Didn't think that this dilapidated part of town would be so photo-worthy."

"Yup, destruction and decay are always worth a shot."

"Not everything's trashy around here." Max said with a smile, aimed her cam at Chloe and took another shot. "So, where are we going?"

"Well, if you'd hurry, you'd already know. But until we arrive it'll stay a secret."

"Fine," the brunette girl sighed, "Don't drown me with the details."

Chloe walked over to Max and wrapped one arm around her shoulder. "Chillax, Maxi, we're almost there. You'll like it, promised!"

Longing for closeness, Max embraced her girlfriend's waist and leaned her head on her shoulder. Both girls walked like this for some time, until Chloe broke the embrace.

"Well, here we are!"

"The old harbor?" Max said in unbelief, scanning the surrounding area.

"Yarrr, ye ol' harborrrrr! A fun playground for ye ol' pirates!"

"But you know that trespassing is forbidden?" Max said with a frown, pointing at a sign on the old metal fence.

As a response, Chloe just gave her girlfriend a wry smirk, took a black marker out her pocket and scribbled on the red-framed sign. Behind _No trespassing_ she put a _?_ , followed by a _No way!._ "Besides," she said, crossing her arms, "You're our foremost expert when it comes to trespassing."

"C'mon, Chlo, it was just one time I broke 'n' entered abandoned property and it didn't end that well for me."

"Yeah, but this time you'll have me at your side to fend off all the evil Jasmine-goblins lurking in the dark!"

With a soft giggle, Max gave Chloe a soft nudge, "You're such a giant dork!", and then sighed in defeat, "Fine. What's an adventure without some risks, right?"

"Ha! Captain Bluebeard and her First Mate Long Max Silver are back in action, bitches!" Chloe cheered, hugging her smaller girlfriend tightly for a short moment. Then, Chloe started to look for the entrance.

"But how do we get in?"

"Just guess."

"Hole in the fence?"

"See, expert!" the blonde said, earning some rolling eyes by Max.

"More the only logical option to enter a restricted area."

"Where's this stupid…" Chloe mumbled, almost crawling through every little bush. "Fuck! I could've sworn that it was around here."

Max almost wished for the hole to stay hidden and to call off this adventure, until Chloe suddenly cheered in excitement.

"Yes! Found this little motherfucker!"

Both girls looked at the very small hole, which was almost completely overgrown by the bush.

"You know that this hole's very small, right?" Max mentioned with one arched eyebrow, shifting her gaze to Chloe, who answered it with a wide grin.

"Small for me, but you shouldn't have any problem walking through it." This comment earned Chloe a punch on her arm. "Ouch, dude!" the blonde whined, rubbing the hit spot. "So, you wanna go first? I mean, the smaller ones always go first."

The next punch on her arm, was so hard that it threw Chloe off balance and let her land on her butt.

"OUCH! Fucking dammit, Caulfield! Try to hit a different spot, will ya?"

"That was strike number two, Chlo! One more stupid growth-joke and I'll deny you any tongue-action for the whole month!"

"What?! No! That's unfair! You know how much I like to use my height-advantage to mock you."

"Your choice!" Max plainly replied with a shrug, making Chloe sigh in defeat.

"Fine! You won. No growth-jokes anymore."

To the blonde's own surprise, Max embraced her head with her hands and gave her a long kiss, followed by a warm smile. "Thank you!"

And while Chloe was still completely stunned, Max began to crawl through the hole in the fence.

* * *

The scenery from the old harbor looked like it had been taken from an End-time-movie. Rusty old industry buildings; withered and abandoned many years ago. Wild plants were growing through the cracks in the pavement and concrete. Mother Nature was getting back what once belonged to her.

Despite the sounds of the nearby ocean and the whistling wind that blew through and between the large structures, it was totally quiet. The noise of humanity for once eclipsed by nature.

Shot by shot Max tried to capture this almost surreal and eerie setting. Although Chloe had always been giddy and restless when they had an adventure, she stayed calm this time and enjoyed seeing her most beloved girlfriend in such passion. She knew that this was Max's true nature. That taking photos of everything was some sort of meditation for her.

Once, Chloe had asked her why she was so into photography and Max's answer had surprised her more than everything else. Max had told her that she was more comfortable seeing life from a distance through a viewfinder than experiencing it herself. Chloe knew about her girlfriend's anxiety issues, though she never experienced them directly. Since they knew each other, Max had always opened up to Chloe. Trusted her. Felt strong with her. Short: Chloe gave Max the needed strength and the one or other nudge in the right direction to finally experience and enjoy life.

As Max realized from the corner of her eyes that Chloe was gazing at her absently, leaning against the withered brick wall, the brunette raised her instant-cam and took a picture, the click bringing the blonde back into the here-and-now.

"Perfect!" Max spoke quietly as she checked the photo.

Chloe walked towards Max, snapped the picture out of her hands, gave the smaller girl a peck on the cheek and looked at it. "Damn, you're such a talent!"

"The shot is only as good as the scenery."

"Stop giving me the mushy treatment all the time!" Chloe responded, giving Max a soft push while her cheeks were reddening.

"Stop denying the truth, Chloe. You are model-material!"

"No! Models are stupid bitches, I'm a badass pirate and wanna do more exploring and less mushy shit!" the blonde almost shouted back, and wanted to walk on, but was stopped by Max's soft touch on her shoulder.

"Chloe," the younger girl said softly and made Chloe to look at her as she grabbed her hands and intertwined their fingers, "Even badass pirates need some mush from time to time or else they end up all sad and alone. Chloe, when I call you a model, then I mean that you're MY model and I will never ever leave you alone anymore, 'cause from now on I'll stay at your side. Forever!"

"And ever!" she said softly and sighed, "Fuck, you're so right! But since dad a-and that shit in Seattle I'm so afraid to lose everyone who matters something to me. These last months without you…I just…It was so hard. I don't wanna lose you."

Max tip-toed and planted a soft kiss on Chloe's lips, before she embraced her tightly. "You'll never get rid of me, Price! You already tried and failed miserably!"

With a scoff, Chloe pressed her girlfriend even closer and lifted her a bit up in the air, spinning her around. Both girls giggled and laughed until they both felt dizzy and stopped.

"I love you so much, Max!"

"I love you, too!" Max said quietly, gave Chloe another kiss and smiled at her warmly, "C'mon, Captain Bluebeard, let's explore some more, 'kay?"

Instantly, Chloe broke the hug and saluted. "Aye aye, Long Max Silver! Let's set course toooo…" she looked around randomly, until the blonde found a hole in the wall of a building and pointed at it. "…over there!"

* * *

Slowly, her eyes adjusted to the less amount of brightness inside the large building. With every passing second, more and more details came into focus.

Besides some old, rusty machines and some conveyor belts the huge hall was pretty empty. Scrap, garbage and debris of various sizes were scattered all over the floor.

"Wow!" Chloe spoke in awe, spinning around with stretched out arms. "Hall is empty!" she yelled, her voice echoing throughout the structure.

"'Cause all the big scrap isn't here!" Max added, earning a wry smile from Chloe.

"Someone knows her Shakespeare."

"You know I love the classics."

Sticking her finger into her mouth, Chloe made a gagging sound. "Blech! It sucks that they force us in school to read this shit. I prefer Fantasy and Manga!"

"You're such a nerd!"

"Guilty as charged," the blonde spoke with a bow. "C'mon, let's explore this place!"

Max didn't know how much photos she'd already taken on their adventure so far, but it must've been hundreds, making her change the memory card of her cam.

"Hey Max, look! I'm riding the conveyor belt! Dun dun…duh duh duh…dun dun…"

With a rock song on her lips, the blonde girl posed on the conveyor belt in a surfing position.

"Hold that pose!" Max said with a giggle, bringing forth her instant cam.

Suddenly, a loud cracking sound chimed from the old machine as something broke under Chloe's weight, making the girl lose her balance as the whole structure started to wobble under her feet.

"Whoawhoawhoa…SHIIIT!"

With waggling arms, the blonde tried to stay on the belt, but was eventually thrown off as the whole construction collapsed with a deafening clinging sound of metal. Max had to turn away and shield her eyes as the cloud of emerging dust hit her.

As soon as the noise had stopped and the dust had settled, Max gazed at the mess in front of her with wide eyes, Chloe nowhere to be seen.

"CHLOE!" she yelled as she made her way to the spot where Chloe fell off. The brunette girl climbed over the pile of junk and bended metal in panic, fearing that her girlfriend might be injured or worse. But to her own relief, she heard a coughing nearby and darted towards it immediately.

"Chloe!" Max gasped as she saw her girlfriend lying on the ground, surrounded by all the scrap metal. She kneeled down beside her and scanned her from head to toe for injuries. "Chloe! Are you alright? Are you hurt? Talk to me!"

"I'm…" Chloe spoke between her coughs, "I'm fine…just…just some bruises."

Though she was completely covered in dirt, Max didn't bother to instantly take the still coughing blonde into a tight hold, rocking her softly while big tears emerged from her eyes. "Thank god! I was so worried!"

Realizing that Max started to cry, Chloe tightened the embrace and combed through her hair. "I'm so sorry for making you worry. It was a stupid idea."

Breaking the hug, Max shook her head and gave Chloe a weak smile. "You couldn't know that this shit would collapse."

"Still." the older girl said with a sigh, "We better should go and…"

"No," Max interrupted her, "Just because of a setback we don't have to stop. It's fun, and I didn't have that much fun since…well, since Christmas…before my mom went all bonkers, of course. We just…we just need to be more careful!"

"Got it!" Chloe answered, stood up with a groan and dusted herself off, while Max did the same and checked her cameras. "Holy shit! Did I do that?" the taller girl suddenly cursed as her sight wandered over her recent masterpiece of destruction.

"You think someone heard that?" Max asked with some concern as she closed in on her girlfriend and entwined her fingers with Chloe's.

"I dunno," she said with a shrug, "It was pretty loud, though I doubt that there were any people around. This whole part of town is mostly deserted since the fishing industry went to shit."

"I hope so. C'mon, let's try to find a way upstairs. I wanna take some shots of your masterpiece from above." Max mentioned with a wink, dragging her girlfriend away.

"And you think upstairs is safer than down here?" Chloe answered, stopping Max with a soft pull. "Maybe we should continue our adventure in the dungeons of Arrrrcadia Bay!"

Max followed Chloe's stretched out index finger, which pointed at a hole in the ground that lead to the basement of the building. A slight headache suddenly emerged and it grew worse with every second. Her sight blurred and with a blinding flash the whole room went dark. The former silence was replaced by a constant drumming of a heavy rain on the metal roof and loud howling of strong winds.

A loud thunder let Max wince and as she tried to squeeze Chloe's hand she realized it was gone.

' _A thunderstorm?! Why am I in the middle of a thunderstorm? Is this a new Vision?'_

For a short moment the room was enlightened by bright flash, showing Max that she was still looking at the entrance to the basement, but something seemed to be off, and the next lightning showed the brunette what it was. Someone sat there, leaning against the wall, not moving.

Normally, Max would've been forced to just watch the Vision from the perspective of another Max, just feeling her emotions. But this time it was different. Because of the darkness, Max instinctually had tried to reach for her phone. And this time it suddenly worked that she was in command of her body. But like Chloe, her camera bag was gone, too. And it was right in this moment that she realized how cold she really was. As Max looked down on herself the next bright flash revealed that she only wore a t-shirt and some pajama shorts.

"Chloe?" she yelled into the darkness and to her own surprise, she received an answer.

"I'm here Max." said a hoarse, weak voice, barely hearable through the noise of the thunderstorm outside.

"Where are you?" Max shouted in panic, looking around.

"I'm over here." the weak voice answered her once more. And just now Max realized that the source seemed to be the person that was leaning against the wall.

Completely terrified by this whole eerie setting, Max moved cautiously towards the sitting person, step by step. Every now and then a flash enlightened the vast room for a short moment, before it was dipped in entire darkness again.

The more Max closed in to the body, the more she was able to see, every burst of light showing her more and more horrible details. The person was definitely a girl with blue-dyed hair and, like Max, she just wore a pajama. But the most horrifying thing was that she was sitting in a puddle of blood, which was seeping out of a wound on her shoulder.

"Ch-Chloe?"

"Max." The other girl's voice was now nothing more than a faint whisper, almost completely swallowed by the sound of the storm. In the brightness of the next lightning, Max could see how the bluenette slowly raised her head and as the next flash occurred, the young girl was completely startled as she suddenly looked into the pale and bloodied face of an older version of Chloe.

Out of fear she stumbled backwards, only to trip on some debris, but instead of falling, she was caught in mid-air.

"Whoa, dude! Are you okay, Maxi?"

After a few blinks with her eyes, the blurriness abated and Chloe's concerned face came into focus. Her headaches were almost gone, though she still felt a bit dizzy. Like water running through a sieve, the memories of this last experience seeped away. First, the images became monochrome, then blurry and finally they vanished entirely.

"Chloe, wh-what happened?" Max asked in confusion.

"I don't know. I just mentioned that we could do some spelunking and then you stumbled backwards, right into my strong arms." Chloe said with a smirk, followed by a wink, but then got dead-serious again. "You sure you're okay, Maximus?"

"I-I think so," the younger girl answered with a nod, trying to stand on her own, "Maybe this whole incident from before just freaked me out too much."

Not entirely believing her girlfriend, especially not after everything that had happened to them, Chloe just frowned at her. "But you do tell me, if another one of your Visions comes up?"

"Of course," Max said, wrapping her arms around Chloe as she's remembered of the many death's Chloe died in her dreams. Mental scars that won't fade so soon. "You know that I don't wanna go through all of this by myself again."

"I know," Chloe whispered softly, rocking Max gently, "Sorry for bringing it up!"

Shaking her head, Max backed away a bit. She locked eyes with Chloe and gave her the warmest smile that could even melt whole pole caps, or in this case, Chloe's heart. "It's okay. It shows me that you care and…" With a deep exhale, the young brunette rested her head on her girlfriends shoulder once more. "You're the best, Chlo! One of a kind!"

Despite hearing such praises from Max since they both met for the first time, Chloe never got used to them. Sure, in the old days she always acted kind of untouchable, but when it came to Max, she wished for nothing more than being close to her, though she never would've admitted it. But now it was something entirely different.

"Damn, Caulfield," Chloe suddenly spoke with a wry mischievous smirk, "I wanted to go on a badass adventure with ya, and now it turns into a big mush-fest!"

With a chuckle, Max gave Chloe a light shove. "Admit it, Chlo, you like it, you big mush-ball!"

"You did not just call me a mush-ball!"

"I did, you giant goop!" Max continued to mock, taking a few steps back.

"Oh you're so in for a tickle treatment! Prepare to walk the plank, you little scallywag!"

"Only if you catch me!" the brunette responded with a stuck out tongue, already bringing some distance between her and Chloe.

With a shriek, Max dodged Chloe's first attempt to tickle her. What followed was a wild chase through the whole building, accompanied by loud laughter, shrieks and giggles.

"Arrr, ye cannot escape my wrath forever, Long Max Silver!" Chloe said with her pirate voice as they both stood face-to-face, a big piece of the former conveyor belt between them.

"But ye are too slow for my evading skills." Max countered, looking around for a new escape route. A metal stair, which led upwards, caught her attention, and with a fast sprint and a new laughter she made her way to it. Looking over her shoulder, she realized that Chloe was closing in. Both girls ran upstairs until Max came to a halt at the top, breathing heavily.

"Gotcha!" Chloe yelled, tackling Max. Both lost their balance and stumbled through a door with another loud shriek. Unable to stay upright, the girls hit the dusty ground and kept on rolling around each other until they finally lost their momentum in the middle of an office room. Still chuckling, Max and Chloe gazed at each other for a long time. Laying on her girlfriend, Chloe brushed some dust from Max's freckled face with a wide smile.

"Mush-ball!" Max kept on mocking in a quiet sing-songing tone.

"Sue me!" Chloe whispered back, leaned in and gave her a long passionate kiss.

Still not being used to be kissed like this, Max's face burned up, while her heart tried to jump out of her chest, and the butterflies inside her stomach went crazy. Like if she needed some hold in order to not fly away, the brunette's hands clawed deep into Chloe's T-Shirt. And as they parted their lips, Max could see something in Chloe's deep-blue eyes that she'd never seen before. Was it longing?

"Chloe?" Max spoke softly, making her girlfriend to snap out of it.

"Y-yeah?"

"I…uh…I'm kinda freezing my ass off."

Blinking a few times, Chloe needed some time until she was completely out of the zone. "Y-yeah…sorry!" she stammered, her cheeks intensively blushed as she got up. Max followed stat and checked her cameras again.

"Wow! That is a bigass office," Chloe said as she spun around to let her gaze wander around the old office. As the big hall outside, it was mostly empty, except from an old desk, an old cozy chair and a wooden cabinet. Two big windows with a panoramic view towards the ocean gave it a bright and almost comfy atmosphere.

"Wowser!" Max gasped, walking over to the window, while Chloe took a seat in the almost antique chair, which creaked under her weight as the blond leaned back and put her feet on the desktop.

"Y'know what, Max? I think this place is gonna be our new pirate lair. Imagine this," Chloe began, framing a picture with her hands, "A pirate flag over there, the rest of the walls covered with posters and graffiti. We could scavenge the other buildings for cool stuff and bring it here. And downstairs," Now she leaned forward with a toothy grin on her face, "We will build ourselves a badass skater park! And maybe," Chloe jumped up and wrapped one arm around Max's shoulder, "I'll finally get your sweet ass on a board!"

"This sounds awesome, Chlo! But I think I'll pass on the skateboarding."

"But why? You never even tried."

"Chloe, you know how clumsy I am. Me and skateboards, that's just an accident, waiting to happen," Max mentioned with a warm smile, giving Chloe a peck on her cheek. "I better stick to my cameras and capture your awesomeness. But thanks for trying to bring me out of my comfort zone!"

"No thing, Maxi! But mark my words, I already managed that you listen my music, soon I'll get you on a board, too!" the blonde said, sitting back down on the chair, giving Max a wide smirk as the brunette looked at her with a puzzled expression. "What?! I checked your iPod while you were on the shitter. Now don't try to gaslight me here, Caulfield!"

Shaking her head, Max turned to the window and readied her camera to make some shots.

"I rest my case!" she heard Chloe say and peeked through her viewfinder with a smirk.

The shutter clicked a few times, before Max turned to Chloe again, seeing her sitting in the cozy chair, feet resting on the desk again, humming one of her favorite songs while she gazed at the ceiling and played an air-guitar. The younger girl took out her instant-cam, ready for another shot as she was stopped by Chloe's voice.

"Don't you dare making a photo of me without your cute face in it!" the blonde said without even glimpsing at her girlfriend.

Wondering how Chloe had realized that she wanted to make a photo of her, Max realigned the camera and took a picture that showed her with a stuck out tongue and Chloe in the background.

Once again, Max shifted her gaze to the panorama in order to make some more photos.

"Hey, you! Stop right there!" a male voice suddenly yelled from the outside.

Completely startled, Max almost dropped her cam, and as she glanced down at the street, she saw a man dressed in a security uniform. At the same time the young girl heard how Chloe jumped from the chair again and joined her at the window.

"Shit," the blonde hissed, "One of those stupid mall cops! Max, we need to bail, right now!" Chloe hurried, grabbed her girlfriend's hand and rushed for the door. Max obliged without hesitation, her mind almost blinded by panic.

They hadn't even left the office as both girls heard how the gate downstairs was opened, letting more light inside the large hall. Knowing that exiting the building without being spotted was now merely impossible, Chloe stopped her tracks immediately.

"Fuck! Go back, go back!" she spoke panicky, shoving Max back into the office and closed the door as fast and quiet as possible.

Just standing there, her body shacking out of pure nervousness, Max's gaze followed Chloe, who was walking up and down the room, trying to find a way to escape.

"Wh-what are we gonna do now, Chlo?" Max stammered, her eyes welling up as she was on the edge of a meltdown, fear taking a grasp of her heart.

"I don't know," Chloe blurted out harsher than she intended to, making Max wince. "Fuck, we're so screwed! Mom's gonna kill us. We…we…" Suddenly, Chloe ceased to move and kept looking at the wall behind the lonely cabinet. The steps of the security guard, who was now coming up the stairs, grew louder and louder.

Without wasting another second, Chloe grabbed Max's hand and dragged her over to the cabinet. Behind it was a small door, almost completely covered by the furniture. The blonde opened it as far as possible, without moving the closet too much and squeezed herself through the gap. Max followed, and as they closed the door again, they were engulfed by complete darkness.

Being caught in a dark place and hunted by the security guard, Max was on the verge of having a full-grown panic-attack. Her breathing was near hyperventilation and her whole body trembled. A silent sob escaped her mouth while tears were dripping onto the floor.

"I'm here, Maxi!" Chloe whispered soothingly into her girlfriend's ear, taking her into a very tight embrace. "We're gonna make it! Here…" She took Max's hand and placed it right above her also fast beating heart. "I'll always be with you!"

Feeling Chloe's heartbeat and the warmth of her body comforted Max. With every second she calmed down more and more, just being glad that she had someone caring as Chloe at her side. The person that meant everything to her. "I love you, Chloe!" she whispered softly with a shivering voice and cuddled herself even closer.

"I love you, too!" was Chloe's reply, followed by a kiss on the forehead.

Violently, the office door flew open and the security guard stomped in, making both girls wince. "Where are you little punks?" he yelled into the room without receiving an answer. Max and Chloe could hear that the security man walked up and down the room, searching for them until he cursed and, apparently, talked into his radio. "This is Davis. We've got some little shitheads straying around the premises. Secure the entire area around building 7!"

Without wasting another moment, the guard left the room and headed downstairs again to continue his search elsewhere, his steps and curses fading in the distance.

"I think he's gone," Chloe whispered after a while, still listening if any sounds could be heard outside. "Okay, Maxi, I'm gonna check the perimeter and you stay…" Before the blonde was able to finish her sentence, Max tightened the embrace even more, signaling her that she didn't want to be alone. Chloe broke the hug very cautiously, placed another kiss on Max's head and gave her hand a soft squeeze. "Okay, then let's bail, before this dickhead comes back!"

Very slowly, Chloe opened the small door, the through the growing crack seeping sunlight blinding her and Max. Every creak made the two girls twitch and hold their breath. Finally, the gap was big enough to squeeze through it.

The office was empty, as well as the hall downstairs. The guard had left the gate open, but right at the same moment Chloe thought that they could get out of the building easily, a shadow walked past.

The girls froze immediately, not moving a limb. Max was now squeezing Chloe's hand so tightly that it almost made her groan. To their relief, the security man who was guarding the gate stood with his back towards the girls, not noticing them.

With some gestures, Chloe told Max that they were going to make their way for the hole in the metal wall again, which was confirmed by the brunette with a nod.

Avoiding anything that could cause some noise, Chloe and Max sneaked through the hall, always throwing the one or other glimpse to the guard at the gate. Although Chloe almost expected Max to trip at least once – she chided herself for this thought – both reached the improvised entrance without getting caught and left the building.

Once outside, the two headed for the hole in the fence in a fast pace. Their longed-for destination in sight, both girls smiled at each other in relief, until a sadly familiar voice made them wince again.

"There you are! Freeze!" the security guard yelled and started to run.

"Shit! Run, Max, run!" Chloe screamed at Max, grabbed her hand and sprinted for the exit.

Though the guard seemed pretty bulky, he was fast as hell, closing in on the fleeing girls very fast. Chloe knew that this would become a close call, so she already planned the escape through the fence.

"Okay…listen…" the blonde gasped between her breathings, "take off…your bag…and…crawl through…the hole…as fast…as possible! I'll be…right behind ya."

Her face already completely red and drenched with sweat, Max nodded and took the bag from her shoulder. As soon as she reached the fence, Max hit the ground, shoved her cam bag through the hole and followed.

Chloe's eyes widened as she took one last glimpse over her shoulder, seeing that the guard had almost reached her. "Shitshitshitshitshit!" she hissed and began to crawl through the gap until she got stuck. "FUCK!" she screamed, trying to free herself, but to no avail. Not wasting any time, Max grabbed Chloe by her hands and pulled.

"Now I gotcha!" the guard cheered with a grin, ready to grab Chloe by her feet and pull her back in.

With a loud scream of desperation, Max mobilized all her strength in one last pull, and with a loud rip of the fabric of her shirt, Chloe was pulled on the other side of the fence, while the guard just hit it with a groan.

Panting heavily, the two girlfriends gave each other a short, but tight hug, before they held each others hand again and started to run away with some giggles. One last time, Chloe turned around with a wide grin, yelled a "Later, fuckers!" and flipped the guards at the fence the bird.

* * *

"Did you see their faces? This was so awesome! An epic win for Captain Bluebeard and Long Max Silver!" Chloe spoke in excitement as they walked down Cedar Avenue.

"It was awesome," Max responded with a wry smile, which faltered right away again, "Sorry for almost having a panic-attack, though!"

"Hey," the blonde said with a smirk, giving her girlfriend a soft push, before she flung her arm around her shoulder and ruffled through her brown hair, "You did great! I almost shitted my panties, too, y'know."

"I don't know. What if they come for us? We did in fact break the law back there."

"Dude, how should they find us? It's not like we live in _1984_ and have GPS trackers stuck in our butts."

Max eyed Chloe's ripped shirt, her dirty appearance and the cobwebs in her hair, brought forth her cam and took another shot of them both, showing it to Chloe. "It's not like we look that much inconspicuous, Chlo."

"Pft, it's not like they can get our asses just because we look like we cleaned out our attic," Chloe spoke with a scoff, stopping in front her house, "Besides, I already have a plan. We go inside, take a well deserved bath, change clothes and then make an indoor session. D & D, Videogames, getting some mush…it's gonna be fucking great!"

"Okay, okay," Max giggled, "Hot bath and indoor session does actually sound great."

"See, Chloe has the master plan," the blonde said with a grin, took out her keys and was surprised as the front door opened after a slight turn. "Huh, that's strange. Mom must've forgotten to lock the door."

"Maybe she was in a hurry? Or she came home early?"

"Hmm. Possible, but her car isn't in the driveway, and she never forgot to lock the door before."

Chloe and Max gazed at each other for some time quizzically, until Chloe just shrugged, "Life is strange sometimes," and opened the door.

"Or weird," Max added as they entered the house and walked upstairs.

"Or it just sucks ass!"

"Not when I'm with you!"

"D'awwww, that was so super-cheesy!" Chloe said and took Max in another short embrace, "Listen, I just need to borrow some fresh panties from my mom and then we'll take a dip in the bathtub!"

Intertwining her fingers with Max, Chloe turned left after they reached the top of the staircase. Recognizing, but not giving it a second thought, that the door to her mom's bedroom was closed instead of being open, the blonde girl just grabbed the handle, pushed it down and walked in, only to freeze on the spot.

Both girls stared with eyes massively wide open at the scenery in front of them. Joyce was sitting on the bed, entirely naked, while under her was an also naked man, who Chloe recognized as David Madsen, Max's savior.

With a loud gasp, Chloe's mom rolled off her lover and covered her body with a blanket, while David did the same, cursing under his breath.

While Max face blushed deep-red out of shame, Chloe's did the same out of anger. The blonde girl's whole body shook, while her hands and jaw clenched. Her blue, watery eyes shifted between her mother and David Madsen. First tears were flowing down her cheeks as her lips shivered. Without another word, Chloe turned around, ran down the stairs and left the house.

"Chloe!" Max yelled, although she knew that this wouldn't stop her, that's why she followed her enraged girlfriend, who was stomping down the street with fast, angry steps. "Chloe, wait!"

"HOW COULD SHE DO THIS?" Chloe suddenly yelled into Max's face, unintentionally, after she'd stopped.

Taken aback by this sudden outburst, Max took one step back. "Chloe," she said quietly, reaching out for her loved one. But instead of taking her girlfriend's hand, Chloe just turned around again and kept on walking. "Chloe, just wait a sec!" the smaller girl said in another attempt to make her stop, but Chloe kept on walking, while Max tried to keep up with her. "Where are we going?"

"I don't know. I don't care," was the blonde's plain answer and soon, both girls had reached the end of Arcadia Bay's residential area.

* * *

Much to Max's relief, Chloe had slowed down a bit as soon as the last houses had been hidden by the trees and the landscape. Both were walking now side by side in silence. Still no idea about their destination, they followed the train tracks up north, balancing on them while holding hands to stead themselves.

They were surrounded by the sounds of nature again. It was peaceful out there, and that was something Chloe and Max always longed for: keeping the world outside and just be together, especially when Chloe was angry and needed some space.

"Six months," Chloe suddenly broke the silence, "My Dad isn't even death for six fucking months and she…" Swallowing down a sob of anger and sadness, Chloe let lose of Max's hand left the tracks, walking up and down.

"Chloe," Max spoke quietly, approaching her girlfriend very cautiously, knowing that the rage was still boiling inside of her, ready to break through the surface again. "I bet Joyce has a reason for doing…something…like this."

"Oh, I can tell you the reason," the blonde scoffed, "She's a horny slut!"

Hearing such hurtful words against Joyce by her own daughter made Max angry. The smaller girl took one big step towards Chloe, grabbed her shoulders and made her look into her furious eyes. "Are you fucking cereal, Chlo? She's your mom, don't call her a slut!"

"What's your fucking problem now?" Chloe shouted back, squirming away from the brunette's grasp. "You hated your mom, too."

"Yes," the younger girl instantly shot back, "Because SHE called YOU a slut!" Remembering the events of the last Christmas Eve, Chloe became quiet, wrapped her arms around herself and turned away. "Chloe, such words are meant to hurt other people. My mom's words hurt both of us, you AND me. And your mom doesn't deserve to be called a…a slut."

"But I just don't understand, why else did she do this?" Chloe said after a while with a shivering voice, her hands clenching.

"I don't know," Max answered with a sigh, and took her girlfriend into a tight embrace from behind. "Frankly, I don't understand a lot of stuff grown-ups do. But I think there's a reason behind it. Joyce would never want to hurt you," Softly, Max made Chloe to turn around, watery eyes gazing at each other. "And neither would I!"

Taking her girlfriend into a tight hug, Chloe started to cry. "I love you, Max! I love you so much!"

"I love you, too, Chlo!"

* * *

It was already noon. Despite Max had managed to calm Chloe down again, she felt that there was still a lot of anger inside of her. The best indicator for that: she still refused to go home, heading on north along the tracks, until she suddenly began to run.

"Hey Max, look at that!" the tall girl yelled in excitement.

Max followed her and came to a halt right beside her now wide smiling girlfriend. "What is that?"

"Well, dear Dr. Watson, I'd say it's a junkyard."

"Nicely deduced, Sherlock Price!" was the brunette's sarcastically reply.

Chloe began to chuckle, climbed on the hood of an old car and jumped up and down. "Y'know what, Max? Since the old harbor is in the iron grip of the evil forces of _the Man_ , why don't we make this place our new lair?"

"A junkyard?" Max said with furrowed eyebrows and crossed arms.

"Why not?"

"It's pretty ugly and in the middle if nowhere?"

"That's the whole fucking point, dude!" With a last jump, Chloe landed on the ground again and took Max by her hand, guiding her deeper between the piles of trash. "Imagine this: we have a lot of stuff lying around here, so we can build our own, completely customized lair. You see this?" she said and pointed at an old ship in the middle of the junkyard, "We can even have a real ship to ourselves! And, in the spirit of recent events," now Chloe picked up an abandoned baseball bat, "if one of us gets pissed, we'll have a lotta stuff to smash 'n' thrash." With a wide swing, the blonde aimed at a mannequin and sent the head of it onto a wide journey. "Homerun!" she cheered victoriously, before facing her girlfriend again, "So, what do you say?"

Seeing Chloe so happy and carefree again, after what happened at the Price's house, she just gave her a wry smile. "You already got me with the ship, Chlo. Though, the thrashing part seems very appealing, too."

"Right? Wanna try it?" Chloe spoke, handing the bat to Max, who took it with some hesitation, just gazing at it shyly.

"I-I don't know. I mean, this stuff isn't ours."

"That's the whole point, Max. This stuff doesn't belong to anybody. It's thrown away. But we'll give it one last purpose to finally rest in pieces! C'mon, dude!"

Still a bit hesitantly, Max let her gaze wander around the surrounding trash in search for something smash-able. With a weak and clumsy swing she aimed for a bottle, which just got hit with a soft jingling sound and fell to the ground, still entirely unharmed.

"Well, that was…" Chloe began, looking at the unscathed bottle with one raised eyebrow, ready for a snarky comment. But as she shifted her gaze to Max, who was standing there, shoulders slumped, clearly unsatisfied with the outcome, she swallowed it down and batted her girlfriend's back. "…a start! You just need some practice, though."

"I don't know if I can do this. I'm more the peaceful, constructive type."

"Chill, Maxi. Just think about something that annoys you and, whoosh, you'll turn into the Hulk! Now keep on practicing, I'm gonna take a piss!" the blonde girl said with a wry smile, giving Max a reassuring squeeze on her shoulder before she walked off.

Standing there, in the middle of the junkyard, the batter just lose and unmotivated in her hand, Max tried to think about something that would make her angry enough to smash something. Normally Chloe was the one who wanted to smash or even blow up stuff. Max just always tagged along and admired her girlfriend's handiwork of destruction by taking photos of it.

Aimlessly, the young girl walked around the yard, giving the one or other piece of trash a slight hit with the bat.

' _C'mon, Max, you can do it! Just think about something that pisses you off…like in my Vision. My Visions…'_

Although, she always suppressed any feelings or memories regarding her Visions, Max now let every feeling through this wall she'd build up against them. It was like a dam had broken down as her small body was flooded with rage and anger! With a loud scream, she took a wide swing and let the bat crash onto the hood of an old truck, leaving a deep dent in it. But she wasn't done, yet. Ferociously, she turned around and scanned the area for a new target.

Suddenly, as if someone had opened a drain inside her body, the whole anger abated and was replaced by sadness and grief as her eyes spotted a complete demolished, blue-colored station wagon. She knew this car, because she used to be a passenger in it, multiple times during her childhood. The left side of the car was entirely devastated, probably the spot where the semi-truck had hit it.

' _No chance of survival,'_ chimed Joyce's voice in her head as the young girl recalled this fateful day six months ago.

"Max?" Chloe's voice chimed from not too far away.

"Oh no!" the young girl whispered to herself, her eyes already welling up. She dropped the baseball bat, and began to run towards Chloe, trying to intercept her before she could see the destroyed vehicle. "Chloe, stop!" she shouted as the blonde appeared behind the truck and made her way around it, "Don't come here!"

Unable to make any sense out of Max's words and behavior, Chloe just gave her a wry smirk, "What is it, First Mate? Found some booty ye don't wanna share with me?" But her grin immediately vanished as she saw how pale her girlfriend was. "Max, what the…"

"Chloe, we need to go," Max hurried panicky, trying to drag the blonde away, but as Chloe neither moved nor asked why, the younger girl knew that it was too late.

Completely petrified, Chloe just stared at the familiar car wrack. Tears were flowing down her face in a constant stream while her lips shivered, unable to form any words. So far, Joyce never told her daughter any specific details about the accident, but seeing their former car like this gave her now a pretty good idea about what had happened to her dad, and it broke her.

Despite Max's strong hug, Chloe began to scream out her emotional pain, pictures of her father and every dream she had about him rushing through her head. Her legs weren't able to carry her anymore and since Max wasn't able to hold her taller girlfriend, both girls had to sit down, crying out their emotional pain, like they already did on a fateful day six months ago.

* * *

The sun had already started its descent as Max sat on the dented hood of the old, rusty truck, watching Chloe the whole time, while her legs were dangling over the edge and the warm wind was playing with her short hair.

She didn't know how long she and Chloe had cried, but it was at least an hour. During the whole time, Max had feared that her beloved Chloe might fall back into this post-traumatic shock that she had right after William's death. But it didn't happen. All that Chloe wanted after she'd stopped crying was some time for herself, and Max had been more than willing to give her the needed space.

But to Max's surprise, Chloe didn't take a walk or searched for another place; instead she headed for her dad's car, sat down on the hood and stayed there. Sometimes, Max thought that Chloe was having a discussion with someone, but maybe she was just talking to her dad, like most people do it with their deceased loved ones on cemeteries.

From the corner of her eye Max saw how Chloe now jumped off the destroyed vehicle, but as she was about to do the same, the blonde took the marker out of her pocket and began to draw something on the blue hood.

Soon, Chloe pocketed the pen again, waved the car a slight kiss and walked over to Max, taking her girlfriend into a tight hug instantly.

"You're okay, Chlo?" Max asked with concern, brushing over Chloe's back softly.

"Yeah," the taller girl answered with a nod and broke the hug, a soft smile on her lips, "C'mon, Maxi, let's go home!"

* * *

Meanwhile it was late afternoon. It had taken the girl's some time to reach the street that lead to Arcadia Bay. Both were extremely thirsty and hungry by now, because neither of them had eaten or drunk since breakfast. And as the first buildings came into sight, Max almost wanted to kiss the soil they were walking on.

"Dog, I can't wait to get something to bite," Max remarked with a groan, holding her grumbling stomach.

"Yeah, as soon as we're back home, we're gonna blunder the fridge and I'm gonna cook us some nice grub!"

Hearing that Chloe wanted to cook something, Max scrunched up her nose. "You and cooking? Last time you cooked us a meal it tasted awful!"

"Thanks for the confidence, dork!" Chloe blurted back, but calmed down immediately, "My cooking has improved since I work at the Two Whales, Maxi. And, in contrast to you, I never nearly burned down the whole kitchen."

"Ugh, don't remind me of that. Mom went all berserk on me for that," the younger girl said in a low tone and sighed once more as her stomach let out another grumble, "Right now I'd give everything for a burnt streak."

"Maybe we should just hit the Two Whales and-"

Chloe's suggestion was suddenly interrupted by the loud wailing of a police car's siren. Both girl's stopped and looked at each other quizzically as the vehicle came to a halt right beside them and Officer Berry disembarked the car.

"Heyyy, Officer Berry! Here to bring us home again?" Chloe asked with a wry smile, which faltered as the police-man stayed stern and opened the rear passenger's door.

"No, not this time," he said plainly and pointed at the backseats, "Get in, girls. You two are in bigger trouble this time."

* * *

The conference room of the police station was dipped into a reddish tone by the now almost set sun. During the whole ride to the station up until now, the girls had stayed quiet, not even answering Officer Berry's questions. Even as Joyce joined them, only an uncomfortable silence filled the room, until the door was opened again and a man in a fancy black suit entered and placed himself right opposite to Max and Chloe, bringing forth some folders and paperwork from his leather bag.

"Good day," he said with a smile, shifting his gaze between Max, Chloe and Joyce, reaching everyone his hand, "My name is Arnold Heyworth and I'm here on behalf of my client, Mr. Sean Prescott."

"Damn," Joyce muttered under her breath, covering her eyes with one hand.

"I take it you know my client, Mrs. Price?"

"Who doesn't know him, Mr. Heyworth?" Chloe's mother replied, fixing her gaze on the attorney in front of her. "What are my daughter and her friend are being accused of?"

The man in the suit opened one of the folders. "Breaking and entering on private property, and vandalism in multiple cases."

"Vandalism?!" Chloe suddenly blurted out, "We didn't do shit!"

"So, Ms. Price, you admit that you and Ms. Caulfield gained yourself unauthorized access to the closed down harbor?"

"The old harbor?!" Joyce spoke loudly, staring at the two girls in surprise, "I thought you wanted to fix the treehouse?"

"Well, looks like you're not the only liar in our family," Chloe replied bluntly, her eyes piercing daggers, radiating anger, which dissipated after Max gave her hand a soft squeeze.

"Ms. Price, did you break and enter the premises or not?" the attorney asked again, "I should emphasize that we have evidence to confirm that you and Ms. Caulfield were on said property. Miss Caulfield's pictures alone…"

"Fine," Chloe sighed loudly in annoyance, rolling with her eyes, "We were at the old harbor. So? We're not the first who hung out there."

"That's no excuse, Chloe!" the blonde's mom threw in, but was ignored by her daughter.

"But we didn't vandalize anything!"

"Ms. Price," Heyworth began and took some photos from his folders, displaying them to the girls. They showed the destroyed conveyor belt as well as the tagged no-trespassing-sign. "The security patrols the whole premises, including all buildings, thrice a day. They said that this machine was still intact only an hour before they spotted you two in right the same building."

"Okay, okay! Fuck!"

"Chloe, language!" Joyce chided, but was ignored once more.

"This whole fucking piece of shit collapsed right under my feet when I was fooling around. But I didn't thrash it on purpose."

"Uh-huh, and the sign?"

This time Chloe stayed silent, averting the attorney's gaze as he brought forth the black marker the police had confiscated from the blonde girl, as well as Max's cameras and the associated instant-pictures.

"I think that sums everything up," the attorney said dryly with a satisfying nod, packing up all of his stuff again.

"What will happen now, Mr. Heyworth?" Joyce spoke with concern, "I mean they're still teenagers. Everyone gets into some shenanigans at this age."

"Well, since Ms. Caulfield is still 13, there will be no legal consequences for her. But your daughter…" he said with a sigh, leaving the rest open.

"That's just bullshit!" Chloe hissed angrily, "We didn't harm anything or anyone. This old piece of crap wasn't even worth a fucking dollar!"

"But it's still vandalism. Mrs. Price, I already discussed this situation with my client and he's willing to drop all charges against your daughter under one condition."

Already knowing that things are about to get shady, Joyce crossed her arms and braced herself. "Name it!"

"The Two Whales Diner. Mr. Prescott wants to buy it. Of course he will make you a generous offer, but all you have to do right now is to sign me this guarantee that you will sell him the diner and the charges will be off the table."

As the man in the black suit shoved a sheet of paper in front of Joyce, who glanced at it for a while, before giving Heyworth the stinky eye. "So this is what this entire circus is all about? You want my diner?"

"Mr. Prescott wants it, yes."

"But you know that this is called blackmailing?"

"It's called _making a deal_ , Mrs. Price. Quit pro quo," he just replied, handing Joyce a pen.

"You're not really considering this?" Chloe said, not willing to believe what was about to happen.

"What other choice do I have, Chloe? This is about your future."

"But I'm the one who fucked up."

"And I'm the one who's responsible for you as long as your underage," her mom simply retorted, took the pen and signed the document.

With a wide smile, the attorney took the paper, "Wise choice, Mrs. Price. I'll send you a copy-"

"NO!" Chloe intervened, ripped the document out of Heyworth's grasp and shredded it into pieces.

"Chloe!" Joyce gasped, while the attorney's expression became angry.

"Ms. Price, are you even aware of the severe consequences of this action?"

"Yes, I am, dickhead, and I don't give a fuck," she blurted at the attorney, throwing the remnants of the former document in front of him, "Now bring this fucking crap back to Prescott and tell him that he can stick it so deep into his ass that he can choke on it, 'cause I won't let him destroy my mom's dream just because I fucked up!"

"Alright," Mr. Heyworth said without any emotion, packing his stuff, "You'll hear from me soon."

And as the attorney was about to stand up and leave the room, a faint, shivering voice caught everyone's attention.

"I-it was me."

* * *

When it came to unfamiliar or even unpleasant situations, Max always had the tendency to shut herself in or even to get panicky. This situation, however, was even worse than unpleasant. Being arrested and sitting in a police station; unfamiliar with what was about to happen; almost drove her insane.

' _My parents are gonna blow. Grounding will be the least of my problems. What if they want me to come back to Seattle? What if my mom goes nuts again?'_

Almost entirely zoned out, Max just heard some catchphrases from the conversation between Joyce, Chloe and this strange man, who claimed to be the attorney of a Mr. Prescott.

' _I've heard some stories and rumors about the Prescott family, and none of them were positive. Are Chloe and I in super-big trouble? Maybe this Mr. Prescott is actually nice and just wants to tell us that we shouldn't do something like this again.'_

Then the whole conversation got more heated. Chloe began to yell, bringing Max entirely back to reality.

"NO!" the blonde girl yelled and ripped some sheet of paper into shreds.

' _What the…'_ Max thought and as she realized what was about to happen, she made a choice.

' _Oh no, they wanna sue Chloe for this mess. But why? We just fooled around a bit. I can't let them do this! What did this guy say? They can't take legal actions against me, because I'm just 13 years old. Mom and dad are gonna kill me for this, but I can't let them do this to Chloe. She's been through enough!'_

"I-it was me," Max spoke with a brittle, shivering voice. She felt that everyone was looking at her now, and it made her even more anxious.

"Did you say something, Ms. Caulfield?" Mr. Heyworth asked, arching his eyebrows.

Taking a deep inhale, Max mustered every bit of courage she could find to raise her sight, trying to hold his stinging gaze. "I-it was me. The whole thing…it was my idea. Chloe…I-I coerced her."

"What do you mean with _you coerced her_?" Heyworth asked, leaning closer to Max, whose body was now trembling. If it weren't for Chloe's hand that gave her at least some hold, the small girl would've had a complete meltdown.

"Sh-she didn't lie as she told her mom that we wanted to fix the treehouse. That really was our plan, but…I-I wanted to make a photo series about abandoned and withered buildings, and the old harbor was the perfect place. So, we went there and Chloe…she thought that I just wanted to make some shots from the outside, but…I wanted more. We discovered this hole in the fence…and…and…"

A sob emerged from the young girl's mouth as the stress and the pressure became too high. Max had never been a good liar. Lying always made her nervous. And right now, the burden of this lie, the biggest lie of her life, became unbearable. Luckily, a breakdown in this situation could easily be interpreted as a sign of guilt.

Chloe took Max into a tight embrace, rocking her softly while tears rolled down her cheeks, too. The tall girl knew what Max was doing. She knew that Max was taking the heat for her stupid idea, and right now she just hoped that it wouldn't backfire.

"Chloe…she…" Max continued, trying to calm down a bit, "she wanted to protect me. She…she told me not to go, but…but I did it anyway. She had no other choice than to follow me, and then I…I tried to stand on this conveyor belt, but it couldn't hold me and Chloe…she saved me…oh my god, Chloe, I'm so sorry…I'm so, so sorry!" Max cried out, digging her head deep into her girlfriend's chest.

"Well," Joyce said, now giving the attorney a stern glare, "I'd say that this changes everything, doesn't it, Mr. Heyworth?"

"Yeah," he replied plainly, still looking at two crying girls, "But there are still a lot of unanswered questions regarding the sign and why they ran away from the guards."

"They were scared, Mr. Heyworth, simply scared. And the sign…do you really wanna drag a 14-year-old girl into court just because of a tagged sign?"

With an agitated sigh, Heyworth stood up, said a plain "Good day," and just left without another word, leaving Joyce and the two girls behind.

* * *

Now that the sun had set beyond the horizon, the early evening sky was painted in a slight purple color.

As the Price's new green car came to a halt in the driveway of the house, Joyce turned of the engine and let out a deep sigh, before she gazed at the two young girls sitting in the back of the car via the rearview mirror. During the whole ride, Max and Chloe had stayed silently in a tight embrace. Both looked exhausted in any possible way, but still, Joyce wanted some answers.

"I hope you two know that there will be consequences."

"Not now, Mom! We're so not in the mood for this bullshit!" Chloe blurted out, answering her mother's gaze with an agitated glare.

"But when will you be in the mood for this, Chloe? Are you even aware of the trouble you two have caused?" now Joyce replied, her voice getting louder.

Feeling that Max was about to cry again, Chloe got even more furious. "You know what, Mom? Let's cut the crap. We are grounded until further notice. You'll cut my allowance and tell Maxi's parents about what we did. And here," She reached inside her pocket and brought forth a 20-dollar-bill, "This is an advance for this fucking swear jar!" As Joyce didn't take the money, but only turned around and stared directly at her daughter in surprise, Chloe just threw it on the middle console. "Are we fucking done now? Yes? Good! Then we'll go upstairs now, clean ourselves, get some grub and then go to bed. G'night, Mom!"

With these words said, Chloe took Max, walked her upstairs into the bathroom. And while the smaller girl took a shower, Chloe got her some fresh clothes and then prepared some sandwiches, before she finally was able to wash herself, too.

As the hot water washed away all the dirt from this day, Chloe let out a deep sigh. She never would've thought that so much messed up stuff could happen on one day. She felt sorry for Max. She never wanted to put her most beloved girlfriend in such situation. Never wanted her to take the blame for her doings.

After being finished with showering, all Chloe wanted to do was to finally get some rest and maybe watch a movie with Max. Slowly, she opened the door, slipped inside her room and closed it again. In the dimly glow of the light strings the blonde saw how Max was laying curled up in her bed, already fast asleep.

With a soft smile on her lips Chloe climbed into bed very cautiously and spooned her girlfriend, taking her into a tight embrace.

' _She's so brave. I still can't believe that she put her sweet ass on the line for me again. Gosh, I just hope that she won't get too much shit for this.'_

Groaning in her sleep, Max took Chloe's arm and cuddled her girlfriend even closer. At first overwhelmed by surprise, the blonde quickly got used to the closeness and enjoyed it. She took a deep inhale, her body and mind entirely flooded with happiness, and was just grateful that she had someone like Max in her life. Someone who would always be there for her. Someone who would never disappoint her. Someone who would always have her back. Someone who loved her with all her heart.

"Thank you, Maxi," she whispered softly and placed a kiss on Max's neck, "I love you!"

"Mmmh…love you, too…mmmh…" Max mumbled drowsily back, giving Chloe so much comfort that, despite everything that had happened, she instantly drifted into a deep slumber.


	4. Chapter 3: Rumors

**Chapter 3: Rumors**

She focused, target in the sight of her viewfinder. Angle and light were optimal. The young girl was ready to take the shot.

"Perfect!" she spoke quietly, softly squeezing the trigger.

CLICK!

"Mmmh…" groaned the slight older girl in front of her camera, scrunching up her nose while she slowly woke up, "…you did not just make a photo of me?"

"I actually did, 'cause you look so cute when you're asleep!"

"I don't do cute, you mushy weirdo. Now photo-stalk someone else and lemme sleep!" Chloe said with a drowsy voice, turned around and waved with her hand, signaling Max that she should go away.

"Alright," replied the brunette nonchalantly with a shrug, "But FYI, it's already past 8 am and we need to be in school soon, Chlo."

Immediately, Chloe got up with a start, looking at an already fully dressed Max with eyes wide open. "What?! Why didn't you wake me earlier?"

"Because you looked so peaceful and I figured that, after yesterday, you could need a bit more sleep."

"Ugh, don't remind me of yesterday," said the blonde with a groan and let herself fall onto the mattress again, "Tell mom that I'll get some grub at the cafeteria, 'cause I'm so not in the mood for a rant in the morning."

"No need to," replied Max, which made Chloe to look at her, "Joyce already left way early. She just pinned a note at the fridge and left a pile of sandwiches."

"Huh. Well, I guess she's not in the mood for an awkward conversation, either."

Being reminded of yesterday's incident, Max blushed deep-red in an instant. "Y-yeah…me neither."

"It kinda makes me wonder, though," mumbled Chloe, gazing at the ceiling thoughtfully, "How it feels to have sex."

"Did you say something, Chlo?"

"Hmm?" the blonde answered, raising her head to look at Max, her cheeks slightly reddened, "No…uhm…shit, I should get ready or else we're gonna be fucking late."

"Y-yeah. I'm…uh…g-gonna pack us some sandwiches for the way."

"Thanks, Maximus! And I'm gonna do some wake 'n' shake."

After Max had left her room, Chloe stood up and browsed through the CDs beside the stereo.

' _Let's see…too slow. Too mushy. Too chilling. Blech, why do I still have this shit?'_ she thought with a scrunched up nose, while holding up a CD containing children songs with her thumb and index finger, tossing it away a moment later, _'Too old. BINGO! Firewalk rocks!'_

She opened the tray of the player with a smirk of anticipation, cautiously took out Max's CD, giving it a slight kiss after she'd put it back into the case, and inserted her chosen one.

The loud music blared from the speakers of the stereo right after the blonde pressed the play-button. Knowing that her mom wasn't home, she turned the music even more up and started to dance wildly, banging her head to the rhythm of the rock song, while she forgot everything around her. She took off her tank top and threw it into one corner of her room. She stripped off her pajama shorts and tossed them into another one. Now entirely naked, Chloe jumped onto her bed, played an air-guitar and sung along the text.

"Ladies and Gentleman, Firewalk presents: Chloe Price, the butt-naked guitarist! You may now drop your jaws in awe and throw your panties on the stage!" the blonde girl announced to the imaginary audience after the music abated with one last guitar riff. Breathing heavily, Chloe stood on the bed, not noticing that Max was standing in the door, staring at her with eyes and mouth wide open.

As the next song started and Chloe wanted to go wild again, she saw Max from the corner of her eye and shifted her sight to the more than blushing girlfriend. As soon as their eyes met, Max let out a loud gasp, turned on the spot and ran into her room, slamming the door shut.

* * *

Since Chloe and Max had left the house, both walked beside each other in silence. Even at home they'd only shared few words.

"So…uhm…h-how long were you watching me?" Chloe asked with some hesitation, giving her girlfriend a shy, brief glimpse. But instead of receiving an answer, Max just shrugged, averting eye contact. "Y'know, it became kind of a morning ritual when my mom's already at work that I thrash a bit to wake up, and…uhm…shit, I totally forgot that you were there and the door was still open and…"

"I-it's okay, Chlo. It's just…" Still not looking at Chloe, Max let out a big sigh. "It's been so long since I saw you and e-every time I see you now my body goes rampage, and then my stupid anxieties…sometimes it's just too much and I get kinda panicky. But," with a wry smile on her lips, she finally raised her sight to look into Chloe's deep-blue eyes, "Someday I'll have to get used to it, right?"

"Uhm…y-yeah! I mean, you should get used to that your hot gee eff likes to thrash around the house butt-naked!"

This was something Max always loved about Chloe and made her chuckle every time. No matter how serious or embarrassing a topic was, she always managed to let it shine in a bright, sometimes even funny light.

"Hey, Chloe!" a brown-haired boy suddenly shouted from across the street, running towards the girls.

"Hi, Eliot! 'Sup?" Chloe greeted Eliot Hampden with a more forced than honest smile, and what followed was a very awkward moment, as Eliot tried to hug the blonde girl, who, on the other hand, kept her distance and instead just shook his hand.

Completely ignoring Max, not even giving her a _hi_ , Eliot just focused on her girlfriend and started to talk. "I got accepted into Blackwell on a full scholarship!"

"Wow…uhm…that's great, congrats, dude!"

"How about you? You said you wanted to go there, too."

"Well…yeah," Chloe replied, scratching the back of her neck, "But I haven't filed in my application form, yet."

"But you know that the deadline for scholarships is getting close?"

"Yeah, I know," Chloe sighed, "Listen, Eliot, I…"

"So, what about Wednesday? I got us two seats for your favorite restaurant."

At first, Max was just overwhelmed that Eliot had entirely ignored her, but hearing now that he wanted to go on a date with Chloe on her birthday made the young girl more than just furious.

"Sorry, dude, but I'm gonna celebrate with Maxi here," Chloe answered, flinging one arm around Max's shoulder.

Now finally recognizing the brunette girl, Eliot gave her a short smile, before his expression as well as his voice got emotionless. "Oh! Hi, Max! Didn't know you were back."

Max just stared at him with a stinky eye, her arms crossed, the jealousy burning deep inside of her. She knew about Eliot; knew that he and Chloe knew each other since kindergarten; knew that they both were into science. Also, Chloe had told her that she used to hang out with him while she was in Seattle, of course just platonically; at least from Chloe's point of view. But right now it seemed like Eliot wanted more than just to be a friend, and this drove the young girl almost insane.

"Of course she's back, 'cause she'd never bail on me! Right, Max?" cheered Chloe, pressing Max even closer to loosen up the tension that was hovering above them, but it was a lost cause. Max just kept looking at the boy with an agitated glare, not saying one word, and, to her own surprise, with the wished result.

Eliot stopped looking at her, clearly becoming nervous. "Uhm…th-that's cool…uh…yeah. We see us in Chem?" he stammered, already moving away from the girls.

"Yeah, see ya!" the blonde replied with a faint wave of her hand, before shifting her attention to her girlfriend. "Okay, Maximus, you acted kinda rude there."

"I was kinda rude?!" the brunette snapped back, "This asshole didn't even give me one tiny _hello_ and I'm the one who acted rude? Let alone that he made a move on you."

"Who? Eliot?! Pft, no way! We're just friends and he knows it. So, don't be so jealous."

"Oh, really? Granted, I'm not an expert concerning this whole dating stuff, but asking you out for dinner in a restaurant on your birthday? Sorry, Chlo, but that's just too obvious."

"You really think that he tried to make a move on me? I mean, yeah, he always wants to get a mushy hug, which he'll never get, but somehow I can't imagin' him trying to hit on me."

Taking a deep inhale, Max calmed down, not wanting to let out her rage on Chloe, who clearly tried to keep Eliot at a distance. "Chloe," she said with a calm voice, "I trust you with every fiber of my being. It's just…"

"I get it, Max. And I think you're right," Chloe interrupted her girlfriend and took her hand, giving it a soft squeeze paired with a wry smile, "I promise you that I'll have a talk with him as soon as he tries to make a move on me again, okay?"

"Mh-hm," Max answered with a nod, before both shared a tight hug, whispering how much they loved each other. Unaware that a pair of green, jealousy radiating eyes were watching them.

* * *

It had now been nearly six months since Max had attended school. After the incident with Jasmine Graves in October 2008, the young girl's parents had taken her back to Seattle in order to recover from the injuries. During this time Vanessa and Ryan Caulfield had hired a private teacher, who taught their daughter at home. But in order to still participate the Blackwell-Junior-Talent-Program, Max formally stayed a student at Arcadia Bay Junior High.

Though she had been through a lot since the last time she walked these halls, Max felt very intimidated. She'd have loved to stay together with Chloe, but sadly her girlfriend had classes in another part of the building and therefore wasn't able to at least walk her to the classroom. Without Chloe at her side she felt kind of weak and vulnerable; felt like everyone was looking at and talking about her. There was no doubt that every student at this school knew and talked about what happened last year. Chloe had told her that a video, showing how she'd stopped her girlfriend from beating Jasmine to death, went viral. That was another reason why her parents wanted her out of Arcadia Bay.

Max arrived at the classroom and stopped in front of it. Nervously, her one hand clenched tightly around the strap of her camera bag while the other one grabbed an object that was hidden under the girl's shirt. With one last deep breath, she moved on and entered the room, walking to her seat in a bee-line with a lowered gaze. Now it was pretty clear that everyone in this room shifted their attention towards her, because as soon as Max walked through the rows of tables the loud chitter-chatter of the already present students abated and was replaced by constant whispering.

Trying to ignore the other students, Max just sat down, took out everything she needed for her history class and waited for the lesson to begin.

"Max?!" a girl suddenly gasped in surprise. Max recognized the voice, and instantly looked at Taylor Christensen with a soft smile.

"Hi, Taylor! I hope you don't mind that I sit here."

At first, the blonde just stood in front of the table, not even moving a limb. Max could see that she was unsure whether to sit down or search for another seat, but the ringing of the school's bell practically forced her to take a seat. Only a few seconds later the teacher entered and started his lesson.

Though history still wasn't her lecture of choice, Max tried to focus on following her teacher.

"I'm so sorry for everything that happened!" Taylor whispered unexpectedly, making the brunette shifting her attention towards her.

"It's okay, Taylor. I…"

"It's not okay, Max!" the blonde girl told her, now gazing at the smaller girl with watery eyes. "What I did was just stupid and…and selfish, and…"

Losing her composure, first tears ran down Taylors cheeks, dripping onto her notes, while her face grimaces and she had to muster everything not to sob loudly. Only Max's soft touch and warm smile let her calm down again.

"Taylor, I'm not mad at you. I know that Jasmine tricked you. That you never wanted me to get hurt." She took a deep breath as some memories of this day six months ago rushed through her mind. "Taylor, what happened that day was just so fucked and it took me some time to put the pieces together, but the first thing I realized was that you did something on this day that no one else had done before. You testified against Jasmine." She paused a short moment, rested her hand on Taylor's and gazed at her deeply. "Taylor, you not only brought justice upon this bitch, but also helped me and especially Chloe. You protected my best friend from being expelled or worse, and…I'm just so thankful for that! Thank you, Taylor!"

Her lips were trembling, unable to form any words. During the last six months of Max's absence she imagined every possible scenario if they saw each other ever again, and non of them were positive. They ranged from a slap to a barrage of insults, short: everything that would've broken her heart. But hearing a _Thank you_ was something Taylor never would've expected. It surprised, even overwhelmed her. And only the teacher's strict voice prevented her from crying out of joy.

"Miss Caulfield, Miss Christensen, is there any problem?"

"N-no, sir. No problem." Taylor answered after shaking off the first surprise.

"Then pay attention!" he said and continued his lecture. Once more a whispering chimed from the other students, and instinctively Max knew that it was about her again, but she tried to ignore it.

After a while everyone had calmed down again and the lesson continued normally. During the whole time, Max and Taylor shared some friendly glimpses until the brunette leaned towards the other girl, reaching the blonde her hand. "Friends?"

Without hesitation, Taylor shook it, a wide smile of happiness on her face. "Friends!"

* * *

"Ugh, it really starts to annoy me!" Max told Taylor with a groan on their way to the art-room.

"What do you mean?"

"The whispering. I know that they're talking about me; about this stupid video. But I thought after half a year they'd finally move on."

"It's not just the video, Max." Taylor replied with a low voice and a dropped gaze. She felt those chiding glances, too, as well as the whispering. She realized what a big pressure it was and couldn't even imagine how it must feel for Max.

"Huh? But what else is there to talk about?"

With a big sigh, Taylor stopped moving, before she grabbed the brunette girl by her sleeve and dragged her into the next restroom where she made sure that nobody was there.

"There's a rumor going around, Max."

"What rumor?" Max asked with a frown, almost afraid of the answer.

"A rumor about your absence," the blonde said with a sigh, "They say that you've been in a loony bin."

"Figures." Max scoffed, shaking her head with a wry smirk.

"B-but that's not everything," Taylor continued, her expression growing darker, "It's also said that Chloe abuses a-and forces you to be her friend."

Normally, Max never gave anything about rumors, because they usually were simply wrong and used to bully people. So, hearing that she used to be a patient in a psychiatric ward wasn't that surprising for her, sadly not even something new. But this story about Chloe was an entirely new dimension of gossip.

' _What the fuck?! That's not only not true, but also some pretty heavy sort of bullshit. I can't imagine that Chloe didn't know about this crap, but why didn't she tell me about this? I need to ask her as soon as I see her!'_

"Listen, Taylor, this is all complete bullshit. I've been to Seattle to recover and Chloe…she'd never hurt me."

"I-I know. I never believed them, but…" Taylor took a deep breath, clearly mustering some courage, and gazed into Max's eyes deeply. "Max, please tell me if some eff-ed up shit's going on, 'cause I really worry about you!"

Taken aback by this statement, the smaller girl's eyes opened widely. "Uhm…th-thanks Taylor! I-I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, Max," the blonde said with a warm smile, "just know that from now on I'll cover your behind, too. C'mon, class is about to start."

Grabbing Max by her hand, Taylor dragged the smaller girl to the art room, where they luckily arrived right on time.

* * *

Lunch break. As soon as the bell rung, Max stuffed her belongings into her cam bag, totally excited to see Chloe again.

"Hey Max, wait up!" Taylor said, following Max before she was out of reach, "Wanna grab some food?"

' _I'd like to have some lunch with Taylor and talk with her some more, but I also need some quality time with Chloe. Sorry Taylor, but Chloe comes first!'_

"Sorry Taylor, but I'm already meeting with Chloe and…"

"Oh, that's cool. I can tag along, if it doesn't bother you."

"Well…"

"Yo, Maximus!" chimed Chloe's voice through the hallway, letting a wave of pure joy run through Max's body. With a big smile on her face she turned towards her girlfriend, having a hard time to suppress the need to jump at Chloe and kiss her. Instead, both gave each other a tight embrace.

"Ready for some grub?" the strawberry-blonde girl asked with a wry smile, which faltered in an instant as she looked over Max's shoulder. "What the fuck do you want?"

As the brunette girl turned around to see who Chloe meant, she saw that Taylor was looking at her feet, clearly intimidated.

Max eyes opened wide as she realized that there was some tension between the two girls. "Y-you know each other?"

"Of course," answered Chloe, crossing her arms, "We spent a lotta time together during detention. She's one of Jasmine's bitches."

"Actually, she _was_ one of her bitches, Chloe." Max replied, taking position beside Taylor, "Taylor apologized and is really sorry for what happened. Jasmine tricked her and she even saved you from being expelled. Chloe, please, give her a chance!"

At first, Chloe just looked at her girlfriend and then suspiciously at Taylor. But as her sight caught Max's pleading doe-eyes again, she let out a big sigh. "Fiiiine, I'll give her a chance. But only because you ask me for it! Now c'mon, I need some food or…"

The school's PA cracked and the typical sound chimed through the halls, letting everyone pay attention.

" _Miss Maxine Caulfield, please report to the Principal's office. I repeat, Miss Maxine Caulfield to the Principal's office, please!"_

"I don't know about you, but I have some kind of a Déjà vu thing going on here." mentioned Chloe, exchanging gazes with her girlfriend.

"Ugh," Max huffed, "you better grab some food for us again and…"

"Nope, this time I'm coming with ya, dude. Need to speak with Hargrove anyway."

"Really?!"

"Yeah. Wanna ask her if she could cut me some detention since I've been such a good girl and you're back now."

"I'll be on my way then," said Taylor and gave Max a slight hug, "Maybe tomorrow the three of us can have some lunch together, okay? And Chloe," she reached the blonde girl her hand, "Thanks for giving me a chance!"

"If you hurt her, I'll hurt you even more." replied Chloe dryly, giving Taylor's hand a hard squeeze while shaking it.

Then, Chloe and Max made their way through the crowded halls, side by side, heading for the Principal's office.

"Chloe?" Max spoke, her gaze lowered, "Have you heard about the rumors…about us?"

"You mean the rumors about you, being a lunatic, and me forcing you to be my friend?" she asked back, receiving a nod, "Yup, heard 'bout this bullshit."

"Doesn't it bother you?"

"It…It doesn't matter, okay?" Chloe told her with a sigh, her expression saddening.

With a hold on her arm, Max brought the blonde to a halt, gazing in to her sorrowful eyes with concern. "Chloe, it matters to me! Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I was glad that, so far, you never had to take this shit!" she blurted out, making the surrounding students look at her. "Whatcha looking at?" she yelled at them, which made them to look away again.

"But Chloe," Max said with a soft smile, giving her hand a slight, unnoticeable brush, "You know that we always wanted to share our burdens; that we need to protect each other. Especially in situations like these. Please, promise me that, from now on, you'll always tell me if such fucked up shit's going on, okay?"

Nodding and giving her girlfriend another hug, Chloe whispered a soft "Promised!" into her ear.

"C'mon, Hargrove's gonna rage if we keep her waiting any longer."

* * *

Standing in front of the door to the Principal's office, Chloe and Max shared another glimpse, before Max mustered enough courage to knock.

' _Last time Hargrove invited me to her office it was everything but positive. Gosh, hopefully she's in a good mood and not out to get me.'_

"Come in, please!" chimed the secretary's voice.

Her tiny heart thumped in her chest and her hands were all sweaty as Max reached for the door's handle. Only Chloe's reassuring soft squeeze on her shoulder, paired with a wry smile helped her to finally grab the handle and to enter.

The secretary's office was the same as months ago, nothing had changed.

' _Chloe's right, everything feels like a Déjà vu. Ugh, hopefully nobody's gonna beat me up this time.'_

Before the two girls could walk on to Principal Hargrove's office, the tall, black-haired woman stepped out and looked at the two girls sternly.

"Ah, Miss Caulfield, take a seat in my office, please! Miss Price, how can I help you?" she said with an authority dripping voice as she walked to a file cabinet, opened it und rummaged through the folders inside.

Max could literally feel Chloe's nervousness. Though her girlfriend never seemed to be afraid of anyone, she still had a lot of respect towards authorities.

"Uhm…I just wanted to ask…uh…if you could cut me some detention, please, 'cause…uhm…I-I didn't screw up again and Max is back and…"

"No." was the Principal's short and plain answer, while she pulled out a file and opened it.

"B-but…" Chloe began to reply, but was cut off immediately.

"Miss Price, detention's supposed to be a punishment for your previous misbehavior, not an entertainment program to bridge the boring time during your friend's absence. Therefor, I won't cut you any detention. Anything else?"

"No," answered the blonde, her gaze dropped in disappointment. In order to sooth her at least a bit, Max took a hold of her hand, gave it a soft squeeze and brushed over it with her thumb. The smaller girl knew that it had taken Chloe a lot of courage to ask someone strict like Principal Hargrove for such a favor. Sadly, to no avail.

"Good, have nice break then. Miss Caulfield," she continued, raising her sight from the folder in her hands, "My office, please!"

About to be separated from Chloe again, Max reluctantly let go of her beloved Chloe's soothing hand. "Special spot?" she asked, giving the blonde girl one last glimpse.

"Special spot!" Chloe returned with a wry smile and a nod, turning around to leave.

"Miss Price," the Principal called out for Chloe, making her to glimpse over her shoulder, "The day after tomorrow is your birthday, right?"

"Mh-hm." she answered with a nod.

"Since it is true that you behaved well, I think we can make an exception."

"Y-you mean…"

"Yes, no detention for you on Wednesday. See it as a birthday present."

"Th-thank you, Miss Hargrove!" the blonde girl said in awe, clearly lacking words, while a great feeling of joy rushed through Max's body. She'd have loved to kiss her girlfriend right now, but instead just gave her a wide smile.

"You're welcome," the tall woman answered plainly, shifting her attention to Max again, "Miss Caulfield…"

Principal Hargrove followed the 13-year-old girl into the office, closed the door right behind them and took a seat on her chair, throwing the file on her table where it landed with a slapping sound.

"Miss Caulfield," she began, looking at Max deeply, "Firstly, I want to welcome you back to our school. Hopefully without another incident."

"Th-thank you, Miss Hargrove. I-I hope so, too."

"I must say that I'm a bit surprised to see you this early. Originally, you were supposed to stay another two months in Seattle."

"I-I know, it's…"

"The reasons for your early return are not the cause why I called you here." Hargrove mentioned with a raised hand, "Miss Caulfield, I want to inform you that there have been some changes at our school, since your absence. Because of the incident last year, the school-board started a program to prevent bullying and violence at our schools before someone gets harmed. It's nothing too fancy, just a simple three-step-program. Step one: stop the bullying. Step two: find and take care of the source. Step three: evaluate and treat the victims."

' _This program does actually sound very reasonable. I wish they would've had such a program years ago.'_

"I don't know how much Miss Price has already told you, but there are some very unpleasant rumors going around in this school, and…"

"I-I know. I already heard about them. But they're all not true! I swear, Chloe would never…" the young said, ready to defend Chloe against everyone who thought ill of her.

"Stay calm, Max, I'm already aware that these rumors are nothing more than a bunch of bullcrap. I read the files about what happened to you and Miss Price in Seattle. Right at this moment we're working on stopping this gossip, though finding the source will be close to impossible. This means that, at this point, we initiated steps one and two, only step three remains and that is why I want you to visit our school's psychologist."

' _School's psychologist?! That's new, too. Dammit, Chloe, why haven't you told me about this crap? I don't wanna go through therapy again! It sucks and just brings back those fucked up memories.'_

Hearing that she was about to be sent to a psychologist once more let a jolt of panic run through Max's body as she remembers her last psychological treatments. "I-I don't…I don't wanna go to a shrink," mumbled the freckled girl shyly, gazing at her hands, "I already had a therapy and…"

"I think we misunderstood each other, Miss Caulfield. Firstly, Mrs. Reyes is not a _shrink_ , and secondly, she won't do a therapy on you. She just wants to talk with you about your well-being in order to evaluate your status and, worst case, will _recommend_ a therapy. That's all, okay?"

Still reluctant to see the school's psychologist, but also not wanting to answer back her Principal, Max could only muster a nod to show that she'd understood.

"Good. You have an appointment right after classes today," she added with determination, then picked up the folder from her desk and opened it, "Another reason I called you here is your GPA, and I'm glad to see that it has improved greatly from a 3.2 to a 3.8! Yet I know that there's a huge difference between being taught at a common school or by a private teacher. Do you think you're up to hold this GPA in future?"

"I-I hope so. At least I'll try." Max answered truthfully with a shrug.

' _Honestly, I have no idea how much my relationship with Chloe will influence my learning behavior. Gosh, I'd love to spent every free second with her!'_

"Well," said Principal Hargrove, her lips forming a faint smile, "I have high hopes in you, Miss Caulfield," Then she got dead-serious again as her attention shifted to some paperwork on her desk. "That's it for now. Have a nice break, Miss Caulfield!"

"Thank you, Principal Hargrove." replied Max with a low voice, shouldering her bag while standing up, "A-and thanks again for giving Chloe some space on her birthday!"

The young girl was already reaching for the door's handle as Miss Hargrove's voice made her turn towards the still on her paperwork fixed woman once more. "I see in Miss Price more a victim than a delinquent. She's a very good and quiet student with some lack for discipline. But still, the rules apply to everyone at this school. Violence is and will not be tolerated and therefor must be punished without any exception. Cutting her detention would've sent the wrong signal, and there's one thing I can never afford: losing my authority! It's only a few more months until the end of this school year and I think you and Miss Price will survive this time splendidly. Good day, Miss Caulfield!"

* * *

With a big sigh, Max closed the office's door behind her and stood in the now almost empty hall of her school.

' _Great, another appointment with a shrink and the big wish that my grades stay high. No pressure, Max!'_

' _At least Principal Hargrove doesn't see Chloe as a delinquent and cuts her some slack on her birthday. Can't wait to give Chloe her awesome presents!'_

While she started to make her way to hers and Chloe's special spot, Max rummaged through her bag and brought forth her phone, sighing again as she saw that she'd received a message from her mom.

[Mom]: _Maxine Caulfield! Joyce told us what happened yesterday! Prepare for a serious talk tonight! Mom_

' _Ugh! Great, this day's getting better and better. Though I already wondered when my parents would contact me for an appointment to receive my rage. At least these bastards couldn't sue Chloe, so I can live with the consequences.'_

As soon as she stepped out of the building, the warm spring sun shone on her face and swept away this vail of negative feelings that had been laying over Max the whole morning. She took in the scenery of the school's yard with deep inhale, closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth.

' _I'd like to spend such beautiful days entirely with Chloe. Just the two of us. Only nature and silence. No bullshit, no worries.'_

"Hey Freak, go back to the looney bin!" a boy, who Max knew as Logan, shouted over to her.

Max opened her eyes again and let out another sigh as she had to face reality once more.

' _Chloe's right, everything feels like a big, fucking Déjà vu; nothing has changed. Well, at least not at this school, but Chloe and I…we're different now!'_

With a mischievous smirk on her lips, the young girl pulled the instant-cam out of her bag, posed with a stuck out tongue and middle finger, and took the selfie-shot. After the picture was developed, Max put her cam away and walked over to Logan Robertson. The other students – all of them jocks – took a step aside as Max approached with angry steps and an agitated expression. With a hard push she pressed the photo against the brunette boy's chest.

"What the…" he began to say in surprise, but was cut off by Max immediately.

"Here! If you ever feel the need to open your stupid pie hole again, spare your brain the hard work and just look at that photo, dumbass!"

Though it never had been Max's style to fight back, it felt exceptionally good to make someone like the High School's star-quarterback to finally shut up. With a satisfactory smile on her face, the young brunette continued her way. And again the whispering was following her, but this time the topic would be something entirely different.

Making sure that nobody else had followed her, Max arrived at the abandoned stairs, where Chloe was already awaiting her. And as soon as the strawberry-blonde girl saw her girlfriend, she jumped down the steps and took Max into a very tight hug, followed by a long kiss.

"Damn, I missed this so much!" whispered Chloe, brushing over Max's freckled cheek.

"Me, too." answered the smaller girl, giving her girlfriend another peck on the lips.

"C'mon, Maxi," Chloe said with a warm smile as she broke the embrace, "Let's eat something!"

The girls sat down at the top of the stairs and began to eat, while Max told Chloe about the conversation with Principal Hargrove and the incident with Logan, making Chloe to burst into loud laughter.

"Dude, you really did that? That was pretty badass!"

"I know," said the smaller girl and brought forth the necklace with the three bullets from under her shirt, glancing at it with a warm smile.

"Hey, the necklace I gave you!"

"Mh-hm," she replied, shifting her gaze to Chloe, "I wear it each and every day. It gives me strength; reminds me that you're always at my side; helps me to accept who I am." Then her warm smile changed into a wry smirk. "Besides, I'm officially declared insane and you're a thug, so nobody should give us some shit anymore."

"Yeah," Chloe scoffed, now grinning, too, "The insane badass-pirates of Arrrrcadia Bay are unleashed! Though," she sighed, her gaze dropping, "It hurts me to hear such bullshit about you. You don't deserve it and…"

Instantly, Max grabbed Chloe's hand, squeezing it reassuringly, "Let them talk, Chlo. I don't give a damn about these rumors. You're everything that matters to me, and we will pull through this bunch of crap. Together!"

A new smile was formed by the blonde's lips as she looked into her girlfriend's blue eyes with determination. "You're right! Together we're super-awesome. And one day we'll show them why they're so wrong about us; that they can stick their rumors into their fucking asses until…"

Another, but a bit harder squeeze interrupted Chloe's beginning rage, making her listen to Max again. "I get it, Chlo. And…I-I'm just so glad that I made the right decision; that I fought so hard to stay at your side. It was worth it! I love you, Chloe! I love you so much that I…"

Max couldn't even finish the sentence as Chloe pressed her lips against hers again. She realized that this kiss was her girlfriend's answer; that it told her how much Chloe loved her, too. Her whole body was now flooded with joy and excitement, letting her forget everything else for this magical moment.

Sadly, this wonderful time was merely disturbed as Max had that eerily feeling that someone was watching them. She broke the kiss, turned her head and gasped the name of the most hated, familiar girl with the curly black hair, who gazed at them with a wry grin.

"Jasmine!"


	5. Chapter 4: Talk Things Through

**Chapter 4: Talk Things Through  
**

As soon as she spotted Jasmine Graves at the bottom of the stairs, all the memories of how bad she treated her beloved Max welled up inside of Chloe. Anger flooded her whole body, making the blonde to jump up and dart towards the chubby girl, whose eyes widened in dread. "If you tell anyone about this I'm gonna…"

Jasmine flinched and turned away, her trembling voice dripping with fear. "N-no…please don't…"

Instantly, Chloe stopped in her tracks and frowned at the other girl. "What the…?!"

"P-please…d-don't hit me…please…" she kept on whimpering, tear droplets hitting the pavement beside her feet, "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

Completely puzzled by Jasmine's behavior, Chloe turned to Max, who came slowly down the steps and took place beside her girlfriend. "Jasmine?" she spoke softly, trying to touch the sobbing girl, but hesitated inches before she made contact, because she still felt some kind of reluctance towards her nemesis. "Nobody's gonna hurt you, okay."

"It depends…" Chloe mentioned dryly with crossed arms and a shrug, earning a push from her girlfriend.

"Not helping, Chloe!" Max chided the blonde with an angry glimpse, before she focused on Jasmine again, "I promise you that nobody will hurt you. So, why are you here?"

"I…" she began to answer with a sniff as she faced Max and Chloe again, "I heard that you're back and I…I wanted to apologize…for everything." Then she sobbed once again, more tears emerging from her already red cried eyes. "I'm so sorry for what I did. Please, Max…I'm so sorry!" she pleaded with a shaking voice.

For some time, Chloe's gaze wandered between Jasmine and her girlfriend. Knowing Max, she almost expected her to forgive Jasmine everything with a soft smile and a final hug, but to her own surprise the opposite happened. From one moment to another Max's expression changed from emotionless to angry. Her lips were trembling as well as her voice.

"After all those years of bullying. After all those countless insults; all those threats and beat-ups. After what happened 6 months ago you expect ME to forgive you?!"

"Max…I…"

"You think that a simple apology will just heal all those emotional wounds and scars you left on me?" Max now yelled at Jasmine, who started to sob intensively. "You literally tortured me for years, without any reason. If it weren't for Chloe I…I would've…"

Her voice broke as big tears were rolling down her freckled cheeks. Chloe saw that Max was reliving all those hurtful memories and took her into a tight embrace, brushing with her hand over her head.

"You better go back to your new fancy private school, Jasmine." Chloe mentioned plainly, wanting to get her love some space to calm down. It hurt her to see Max in such pain and wished that Jasmine Graves never would've showed up to rip open those mental scars again.

"I don't…I don't want to. They bully me…a-and my dad…"

Without any warning, Max broke the hug and looked at Jasmine with hate fueled eyes. "Then you finally know how I felt!" she replied agitatedly, turned around, walked up the stairs and sat down at the top, embracing her legs while she kept on crying.

"Chloe, I'm…"

"Just save your breath, Jazzwipe, and fuck off!" Chloe said and flipped off the black-haired girl. She wanted to join Max upstairs as Jasmine's voice made her turn around one last time.

"Chloe, I-I won't tell anybody. Promised!" she spoke, receiving a faint, but also meaningless nod from Chloe, before the black-haired girl turned around and walked away.

Sitting down beside Max, Chloe took the still crying girl into another tight embrace, which was even more intensified as Max shuffled herself closer, longing for more soothing contact.

"She's gone, Maxi. Sssh." the blonde spoke quietly with a comforting tone, knowing deep inside that no matter what she's going to say right now, nothing would calm down Max quickly.

* * *

Though Chemistry had always been one of Chloe's favorite classes, she wasn't able to focus on the ongoing lecture right now. As predicted, Max hadn't calmed down from her breakdown on time to attend any classes. Leaving Chloe no other choice than to call her mom, who brought Max back home, so that she could have at least some space.

Chloe would've loved to stay at her side; to be there for her; but sadly, Joyce insisted that she should stay at school. Of course it made her angry. The blonde had yelled and, eventually pleaded at her mom to stay with Max, but Joyce had stayed adamant. And after the events of the day before, she hated her for this even more.

Like in trance, Chloe had walked into the classroom, ignoring everybody on the way. For more than over 45 Minutes all she did was to stare into empty space, her mind entirely filled with worry about her beloved Max.

' _Dammit, I knew that Maxi was far away from being alright, but I never would've thought that just seeing Jasmine again could trigger such a meltdown. Geez, I hope she's alright. Stupid school, stupid mom! How am I supposed to focus anyway if all I can think about is Max?'_

The sudden vibration of the phone inside her pocket let her snap out of it, eventually. Not knowing who would text her right now, Chloe pulled out her phone and glanced at the display. A wide smile was formed by her lips as a wave of relief and joy washed all worries away in a second.

[Max]: _I'm ok. Resting a bit. Miss you!_

Not wasting any time, Chloe replied the message, not caring if anyone saw it.

[Chloe]: _wish I could be with u. love u._

[Max]: _Love u 2!_

"Chloe?" Eliot Hampden's voice chimed from beside her, making the strawberry-blonde girl to turn off her phone again.

"Hmm?" she hummed absently, still thinking about Max.

"About Wednesday…"

Chloe's eyes widened and her thoughts were replaced by anger as she realized what Eliot tried to do again. "Dude, I already told ya that I'm spending my birthday with Max. And I want an old-fashioned barbecue, not some fancy ass restaurant."

"But I just thought…we could…y'know…" he stammered nervously.

"Eliot, please stop it, would ya?" she hissed, her anger radiating deep-blue eyes locking with his green ones.

"Stop what?"

"Stop hitting on me, Eliot! I'm not interested in dating, okay?"

"Why not? We know each other since kindergarten and…we could just give it a try and…"

"Because I'm already in a relationship, got it?!" Chloe blurted out in frustration, louder than she intended to, making everyone in this class to look at them.

"Miss Price, Mr. Hampden, please keep your private conversations for after the class!" scolded the teacher the two teenagers.

Without another word and now entirely ignoring Eliot, Chloe tried to focus on the lecture, but was disturbed once more as the brunette boy shuffled a small piece of paper right in front of her.

 _Who?_

New fury welled up inside Chloe, making her clench her hands into fists. With grinding teeth, the blonde took her pen, answered and shoved the paper back to its sender.

 _Let it drop, Eliot!_

And again, the scribbled paper found its way to her, and this time the question let something snap inside of Chloe.

 _Why didn't you update your FB status?_

' _What the fucking fuck?! Why are you so fucking annoying, Eliot? I already said too much, time to end this stupid conversation!'_

Now she took her permanent marker out of her pocket and wrote in big letters all over the sheet:

 _cause it's none of ur fucking bidness!_

As she made the dot of the exclamation mark, the tip of the marker hit the desk so hard that it drew anyone's towards the two once again.

"Miss Price," the chemistry teacher spoke to Chloe with a stern expression, "Since you seem to already know everything, why don't you just answer-"

"Water." Chloe cut-off the woman in front of the class mid-sentence in a snappy tone.

"I beg you pardon?"

"The answer." Chloe replied dryly, but as she only received a puzzled expression by anyone she sighed loudly and rolled with her eyes, stood up and made her way to the whiteboard, where the blonde began to complete the formula that was already partly written on it. "If you mix hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide in a ratio one to one, boom…you receive pure water and sodium chloride, a.k.a. salt. A perfect example for neutralization and ideal for cooking some spaghetti. Any further questions?"

Everyone, looked at Chloe in unbelief. Nobody, not even the teacher, said one word as the tall blonde dropped the marker on the teacher's desk and walked back to her seat. As before, she just gazed into empty space, wanting nothing else than to go home and get some comforting mushy time with Max.

' _School sucks! Everyone here pisses me off, now even Eliot. Maxi…you're the only real friend I ever had and ever will have.'_

* * *

The chiming of the school's bell told every student that classes were finally over for the day. Some of them were heading home, some stayed and made their homework, some others had extracurricular activities and a few had to visit detention.

After six months it had become an official routine for Chloe to visit these extra classes. Bottom-line: it wasn't that bad, because during detention she always had time to additionally do her homework or send texts to Max.

But today it was different. Today detention felt even more like a punishment than every other day before. Since Max's meltdown she felt edgy. Everyone annoyed her and she had the need to search for a quiet spot and cry out her anger. Her most beloved Max wasn't doing so well, but instead of comforting her she had to stay in school. And then there was this thing with Eliot. Both had been good friends since kindergarten, though as soon as Chloe met Max, Eliot became more a friend to talk to if Max wasn't around. In Chloe's eyes he was a nice guy. Nicer than most of the others, but that's it. The blonde never had any deeper feelings for him, but the fact that Eliot wanted it to be more, especially now that she was in a so much wanted relationship with Max, for which they had to fight so hard, made Chloe just furious.

As soon as Chemistry was over, she stuffed her belongings in her backpack and left the classroom in a fast pace, trying to bring as much distance between her and Eliot.

"Chloe, wait up!" his voice chimed from behind, telling Chloe that he was following her.

' _Fuck! If he pushes me a bit more I'm gonna freak here!'_

"Dammit, Eliot, just fuck off!" she blurted at the brunette boy, not even gazing at him, but a sudden, tight grip on her arm let her stop and turn around.

"Chloe, listen, I want to apologize. I know I pushed you too hard and…I'm sorry, Chloe. I'm just worried about you."

"Eliot," Chloe sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, "You don't have to worry, I'm…I'm fine."

"But you don't look _fine_."

With another deep exhale Chloe tried to hold her composure. "Listen, it's just this shitty day. Maxi isn't well, school, detention…it…it just sums up, y'know. Plus, some dickhead keeps on annoying me."

As he realized that Chloe had called him an _annoying dickhead_ without a wink or a mocking tone, Eliot's expression darkened. "Y'know, it's not very nice to call someone who cares a dickhead."

"But you're behaving like one," she blurted out again, the anger inside rising once more. "First, you rudely ignore Max without a reason. Then, you constantly try to make a move on me. Let alone that you're sticking your fucking nose up into my private stuff."

"You're not famous for making wise decisions, Chloe. I just wanna help here." Eliot mentioned plainly with crossed arms. If Chloe's harsh words had made some impression on him, he didn't show it. But this patronizing tone by someone of her own age was the last straw that brought the blonde girl over the edge.

"What?! Are you fucking cereal?!" Chloe yelled, not aware that she'd just used one of Max's favorite words unconsciously. The last bit of sympathy she had for Eliot was now consumed by fury. She grabbed the boy by the collar of his shirt, and hissed into his face. "Stay away from me! Stay away from Max! And, in future, mind your own fucking business!"

With these words said, Chloe stomped away, her breathing heavily. She would've liked to smash something.

' _Where's your fucking junkyard if you fucking need one? I can't go to detention like this, I need to calm down first or I'll lose it and therefor endanger my detention-free birthday.'_

Chloe headed for the next bathroom, pushed open the door with force, and as soon as it closed behind her, she kicked against the garbage bin, letting it hit the wall so hard that it bounced back and fell over, scattering its content over the floor. After the loud noise had abated and the bin came to a rest, Chloe placed another kick on it, and another one, until it was dented three times and the floor covered with garbage.

"FUUUUCK!" she screamed out, hot tears dripping down her cheeks. Finally, she rested her body on a sink, her hands clenching onto the edge of the ceramic bowl. A sob escaped her mouth, but she suppressed the next one, trying to regain control over her emotions again.

Slowly her breathing steadied, while her body eased, step by step. Chloe raised her head and looked into the mirror. The fury was almost gone, her expression serious, but not pissed off anymore. She turned on the cold water and splashed her face multiple times.

' _Shit! Long time since I had such an outburst. But Eliot really pushed it this time. What the fuck is wrong with him? Is he that obsessed with me? Ugh, better keep this creep at a distance, before he finds out about me and Max and blurts it all over Arcadia. We're so not ready to come out!'_

' _I better head to detention now. Hopefully nobody heard me or else I'll never hear the end of it.'_

Wiping the wetness off her face with a paper towel, Chloe let out another deep sigh. In lack of a garbage can now, she just shrugged, threw the ball of paper over her shoulder and left the bathroom.

* * *

Right on time Chloe entered the classroom. Some faces were pretty familiar, others were new to her.

' _Ugh, it sucks to be in one room with the real all-time-troublemakers, but…it's only for a few more months, and actually, I don't have to sit next to them.'_

Normally, Chloe chose a seat far away from the other students. But since she learned that Max and Taylor Christensen became suddenly such close friends, Chloe was rather curious what her real deal was. Without a second thought she took the assignment-sheet from the teacher's desk, approached Taylor's space and sat down right beside her.

The straw-blonde girl gazed at Chloe with eyes wide open, clearly surprised that the older girl was sitting so close. With every second Chloe kept staring at her she felt more and more uncomfortable, already shifting around in her seat. Luckily for her, the strawberry-blonde girl had to break the eye contact as the teacher gave his standard-speech, before everyone began its work on today's assignment.

"Taylor?" Chloe spoke quietly, making the straw-blonde wince.

"Y-yeah?" she stammered with nervousness, still focused on the sheet in front of her.

"What's your business with Max?"

As Taylor lifted her head eventually, her blue eyes locked with Chloe's.

"Wh-what?"

"Dude," Chloe now hissed a bit louder, "If Max hangs out with someone who was involved in her bullying, I wanna know what's going on, got it?"

Taylor stayed silent for a while, averting Chloe's stern gaze for some time, before she inhaled deeply. "Chloe, I-I know Max is your best friend and…that you have no reason to trust me, tha-…that's why I'm gonna tell you the truth right away." She looked at Max's girlfriend with determination, her cheeks blushed. "I'm trusting you that you'll keep it between us, so…I'm…I…I kinda have a crush on Max."

Taken fully aback by this confession, Chloe lacked any words. An entirely new feeling emerged from within her body; something she never felt before. It was a wild mixture of anger, hate, fear and the need to protect her most beloved person: jealousy.

' _Okay, Price, don't freak! She…this fucking bitch…has a crush on Max. What should I do? Tell her to fuck off? No, she'd wanna know why. Threaten her? Too obvious, and Max would go all ballistic on me and probably would want an explanation. Shit! That's bad. Really bad! Somehow I need to tell her that she has no chance, in a subtle way, but without giving her a hint about our relationship. Hmm…ah, got it!"_

"I-I know," Taylor responded to Chloe's silence, "I'm a strange freak, but…"

' _Play it smooth and politely!'_

"Nah, you're not. Just into girls, that's all. I'm cool with it."

"And what about Max? Is she interested in…y'know…"

' _Time to twist the truth. Hopefully she'll believe it right away.'_

"Oh…Max…No, 100 percent into boys…no girls allowed."

"Oh, that's…that's a shame, 'cause she's really cute. And…uhm…wh-what about you? I-I'm just curious."

' _Alright, she's buying it. Let's make the alibi perfect.'_

"Dicks. I'm totally into dicks. I know, most people think that I'm the other way around, 'cause I'm not dressed like a girlie-girl, but…"

"Oh…okay…" Taylor answered, her gaze dropped in disappointment, "I hope Max doesn't mind that I crush on girls, though."

"Naaah, Max is the most tolerant person I know. She'll be fine with it."

"Yeah," sighed Taylor softly, resting her head on her hand and gazed dreamily into empty space, "She's such a nice girl and sooo cute! And these freckles. I just love those freckles. Her eyes, so…"

"Dude," Chloe cut her off with a sour expression, her hands already clenching into fists as another wave of jealousy clouded her mind partially, "Stop it or…" _'…I'm gonna slap some sense into you, bitch!'_ "…I'm gonna vomit, blech!"

"Miss Price," it chimed from the teacher's desk, "looks to me like you've already finished the assignment and want another one."

' _Phew, close call. For the first time I'm actually glad to do more of this stupid shit.'_

"Sure thing, Mr. P, keep 'em comin'!" Chloe answered nonchalantly, went to the teacher's desk and took another assignment-sheet, scoffing internally as she read it on the way back to her seat.

' _Assignment, pft! This shit doesn't even keep me busy for ten minutes. Well, I'm not mad about it, 'cause by this way I'll have enough time to text with Maxi and do my homework.'_

* * *

' _What. A. Shitty day!'_ Chloe thought as she was rolling on the skateboard, which she got from Max last Christmas, back home.

' _As soon as I'm home, I'm gonna plunder the fridge, grab Maxi and barricade ourselves in my room until next morning. Gosh, I'm so tired of this fucking world today!'_

Chloe stopped her board as she felt the continuous vibration of her phone. As she gazed at the display she saw that it was an incoming call from Max.

"Yo Maximus, 'sup?"

[Max]: Chloe, where are you?

"Almost home. Why?"

A short pause appeared, followed by Max's sigh.

[Max]: David's here. And Joyce…she wants to talk with us. Set things straight. They're just waiting for you. I just…I just wanted to warn you.

' _Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Why can't we just catch a fucking break?!'_ Chloe thought, her hand squeezing the phone.

[Max]: Chlo? You still there?

"Shit!" she hissed, followed by a sigh. "Yeah, I'm here."

[Max]: What should we do? I don't wanna talk about this stuff. It's so embarrassing.

"I know, I don't feel like talking about this shit either. At least, not without some mush, and I need a lot of mush today!"

[Max]: But how are we gonna do this? They wait downstairs. As soon as you're coming through the front door…

"Then I won't come through the front door."

[Max]: Huh?

A mischievous smirk appeared on Chloe's lips as she made up a plan. "Listen, Maxi, I have a plan. Go to my room and wait for me there."

[Max]: O-okay, but why?

"Don't worry, just wait and you'll see. Love ya!"

[Max]: Love you, too. Take care!

Chloe terminated the call, put the phone back into the pocket of her jeans and strapped her skateboard on her backpack. In a fast pace she approached 44 Cedar Avenue. Before she even reached the house, the blonde spotted a muscle car in front of it.

' _David's penis enlargement. This ugly fuck of a car would've warned me soon enough even without Max calling me. I wonder where he parked it yesterday, though?'_

She came to a halt in front of the house, hoping that nobody was watching the front for her arrival. Her gaze fixed on her room's window right above the garage.

' _I hope my plan works. So far, Max and I always joked about climbing down, not up. Well, here goes nothing.'_

* * *

Slowly, Max opened her swollen eyes. Her head throbbed and begged for nothing more than to banish the brightness again. With a soft groan the young girl turned on her back and gazed at the ceiling.

' _Damn, I really lost it back there. Never thought that I would freak out that much only by seeing Jasmine again. Well, I guess a psychological evaluation isn't necessary anymore, I'm officially a wreck. I just wished that Chloe could've stayed with me. Coping this crap alone is so hard!'_

With another groan she reached for her phone on the nightstand and glanced at the display, seeing that Chloe had send her some messages.

' _Chloe's still sitting in detention and, as always, bores herself to death. At least, when she comes home, she'll already be done with her homework and we can spend the rest of the evening together. Speaking of homework, I need to make mine, too.'_

Feeling a bit groggy, Max slowly stood up, sat down at her desk and fired up her Laptop. While she waited for it to boot up, the brunette rummaged through her bag and brought forth her history and chemistry books.

' _Okay, let's see…a little report about the Industrialization in the U.S. and I have to catch up the missed stuff from Chem. My head still hurts like crazy, but I need to be done with this shit if I wanna cuddle the rest of the day with Chloe. And I definitely need a lot of cuddling!'_

Max shifted her attention towards her computer and opened the browser in order to stream some music. Before she began the work on her assignments, Max checked her e-mails and Facebook-profile. Her eyes widened as she realized that someone had befriended her.

' _That's strange. Except Chloe and nurse Steph, nobody has ever befriended me on FB.'_ she thought and checked who it was, _'Victoria Maribeth Chase?! And she even left a message!'_

[Victoria]: _Hi there, found your profile by accident. Sorry for this eff-ed up shit on X-mas. My mom can be a queen-bee sometimes. Would've loved to chat some more with you. Give me a message! -Vic_

For quite some time Max just stared at the screen, not knowing what to do.

' _Should I answer her? Christmas really sucked there and I would've loved to chat with her, too, especially because she's into photography as I am. But Chloe…she clearly had some problems with Chloe. But why?'_

Her thoughts were interrupted as Chloe's special melody chimed from her phone.

[Chloe]: _booooooring!1!_

[Max]: _I could send you a pic from my hw and you could finish them! Care for some history?_

[Chloe]: _blech! DIY, girl!_

[Max]: _I try. Procrastination for the win!_

[Chloe]: _amen_

[Max]: _Seriously, though, need to start or it'll cut into our cuddling time._

[Chloe]: _DO UR FUCKING HW, MAX!1!_

[Max]: _Thx for the motivation, dork!_

[Chloe]: _pleasure. now keep at it, cause I need lotta mush tonight_

[Max]: _kk. Love you!_

[Chloe]: _love u 2!_

Max laid her phone aside, gazed at the screen of her Laptop again and decided to answer Victoria Chase later. Then she opened her playlist and began her school work.

To her own surprise, she finished history faster than anticipated and went straight on with chemistry, until a male voice that chimed from downstairs caught her attention.

Instantly, the young girl jumped up, opened the room door quietly and listened to the conversation downstairs.

"…don't think that this is a good idea." said the deep male voice, doubt chiming with it.

"David, I know that it's gonna be hard for everyone, but I have feelings, too. And Chloe needs to see it. We need to talk about this!" spoke Joyce.

"But what if she won't accept me? You saw how she reacted."

"Chloe…can be very impulsive. She was overwhelmed by the situation. That is why we need to talk things through; set things straight. David, I need you and Chloe needs to understand that!" Joyce replied, followed by the sound of a few kisses.

"What about her friend?"

"If Chloe accepts you, Max will, too. Don't worry…"

' _Shit, if Chloe comes home and finds this David-guy here, she's gonna freak. I need to warn her!'_

Silently, Max sneaked back into her room, picked up her phone and speed-dialed Chloe's number.

* * *

' _She said I should wait in her room. But why? Better not give it too much thought. Chloe has a plan and I trust her.'_

With slow steps, Max walked towards Chloe's bed and gazed at the chaos around it with a scrunched up nose.

' _Damn, Chloe! If, one day, we share a dorm or an apartment, you'll have to learn to clean up your stuff.'_

Completely in her nosy element, Max analyzed every piece that was laying on the floor, until her sight caught a magazine that was peeking out from under the blonde's mattress.

' _Hmm, since when does Chloe store her comics under the mattress?'_

She pulled out the booklet, realizing that it was one of Chloe's manga, but as she glimpsed at the rating, the brunette gasped.

' _Oh my dog, 18+! Is this an ecchi?'_

The magazine still in her hand, Max sat down on the edge of the large bed and flicked curiously through the pages. From one moment to another her face blushed deep-red and her heartrate as well as her breathing increased exponentially as she pictures showed explicit sex scenes between female characters.

' _Th-that's not just an ecchi, it's a hentai! Where did Chloe get this thing from?'_

Still flicking through the pages, Max's hands became clammy and a tingling feeling emerged from deep inside her stomach.

' _Eww, is…is this what it looks like when girls have sex with each other? I…I'd love to throw this thing away, but…I can't. It's gross, but also I can't look away. I feel so strange in my-'_

"BOOYAH!" Chloe suddenly yelled from behind as she jumped on her bed, startling Max, who shrieked out loud, threw the hentai in her hand high up in the air and fell of the bed. And while Chloe kept on laughing and rolling on her bed, Max just sat on the floor, staring at her still snickering girlfriend with wide opened eyes.

"YOU STUPID, SHITEATING, FUCKING ASSHOLE!" Max surprisingly cried out, jumped on the bed and wrestled with Chloe, until both fell on the floor with another loud shriek.

Despite Chloe was still giggling, Max stayed stern, sat up on her girlfriend's belly and gazed at her intensively.

"Stop. Fucking. Scaring me, Chlo! It's not funny. Especially not today!"

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. But you were so fixed on that mag that I couldn't resist. What were you reading anyway?"

Being reminded of the magazine, Max blushed intensively again and gazed at the floorboards, while Chloe lifted her upper body and searched the spot where the booklet landed, which was not far away.

"Shit!" the blonde hissed as she recognized the explicit pictures, grabbed the comic and wanted to hide it, but forgot in panic that Max was still sitting on her, rendering her action useless. "Uhm…l-listen, Maxi, it's…it's not…uh…it's just some inspiration…for later…way later…uhm…ugh!" she stammered, covering her entirely blushed face with the hentai.

"Chlo?"

"What?" Chloe's mumbled voice chimed from behind the mag.

"Wh-where did you get this thing from?"

Wishing that this so embarrassing moment would finally be over, Chloe just sighed and let the her arms drop to the side. "The internet, Max. Listen, I just stumbled over this website that sells manga 'n' stuff, and they didn't want an ID, so I ordered this mag just for fun."

To the blonde's own surprise, Max took the hentai out of her hands and gazed at it. "It looks kinda strange how they're doing it. A-are we gonna…y-y'know…s-someday…"

Both girls looked intensively at each other for some time. They were breathing heavily, but Max heavier than Chloe. And as the color of Max's face suddenly changed from red to pale, the older girl knew that something was wrong.

"Max? Maxi!"

Max's body began to tremble and she stared into empty space. Not knowing what else to do, Chloe took her into a tight embrace and rocked her softly. Luckily, the younger girl calmed down again, until her shaky breathing became steady.

"I hate…those fucking…panic-attacks!"

Loud steps chimed from outside Chloe's room and Chloe barely managed to hide the kinky comic under her mattress again, before her door was opened and Joyce entered, her expression sternly and one hand resting on her hip.

"I don't how you managed to get inside without me noticing it, but if you want to avert me, than I suggest that you should keep it quiet up here."

Giving her mom the most sour expression ever, Chloe stood up and crossed her arms. "Why? Did we disturb you and your _toyboy_ David?"

"He's not my toyboy, Chloe!" Joyce shot back, now crossing her arms equally.

"Oh really? Seemed to me different, yesterday. Did he give you a good, much needed fuck?"

"Chloe Elizabeth Price, don't you dare talking to me like that!" Joyce yelled at her daughter, unfolding her arms.

Intimidated by all this tension and aggression between Chloe and Joyce, Max took a strong hold of her girlfriends arm, hoping that her touch might calm her down before the situation got worse. And it worked, the blonde girl eased up a bit as she realized that Max didn't like how this conversation was going.

"Chloe," Joyce now continued in a calm tone, "I'm sorry that you and Max had to find out about my relationship with David like this. We planned on telling you, but…"

"Why, mom?" Chloe now asked with a quiet voice, her anger changing into sadness caused by the lack of understanding, "Why did you do this?"

"I want to tell you. I want the both of you to understand. I know that today's probably not the best day for this, but we need to talk things through, before it burdens our relationship. Things are difficult as they are and I don't want this to happen, Chloe."

"Me neither… _We_ neither." Chloe answered, pressing Max closer. "But why has David to be here?"

"Because it involves him, too. At least give him a chance to explain everything."

Chloe closed her eyes and took a deep inhale in order to calm down some more. Max could literally feel how her girlfriend had to struggle against her rage. "Alright, let's do it. Maxi," she said, shifting her gaze towards her girlfriend, "You wanna join? I wouldn't mind, though, if you'd want to stay up here and…"

"No," she gave back with a smile, "I won't leave your side!" And gave Chloe a soft kiss.

* * *

As Max and Chloe entered the living room, David Madsen stood at the glass door and gazed into the backyard.

While the girls were already taking a seat at the table, Joyce walked over to him and softly touched his arm, signaling the him that everyone was ready for the big talk. The tall man walked over to the table and reached Max his hand with a warm smile on his face. "Hello Max, I'm glad to see you up and running again. Sorry that we have to meet under such circumstances."

Max, however, stared for a moment at the given hand, and then in David's eyes, before she blushed intensively and averted his gaze entirely.

"Max, honey, it's alright. You can shake his hand." Joyce said to Max with a warm smile, but received only silence.

"Mom, she's 13 and saw his boner yesterday, I don't think that she wants to shake his hand right now." Chloe mentioned dryly, crossing her arms. If anything, this comment let the young girl blush even more.

"I think she's right, David. Max just needs some time."

"Alright," he said plainly, shifting his attention to Chloe, "Chloe, it's good to see y-"

"I'm 14…I saw your boner…I don't wanna shake your hand."

Overwhelmed by this comment, David exchanged some glimpses with Joyce, who chided her daughter right away. "Chloe!"

"What?" the blonde girl replied with a shrug, "I don't know where his hands were before."

This time it was Max who gave her a hard push with her elbow, paired with a reproving glare as she realized how Joyce's expression darkened. And once more it was Max's influence that calmed Chloe down, deescalating the situation before it got out of hand.

"Ugh, sorry!" the older girl said with a huff and rolling eyes, but still refused the handshake.

Clearly disappointed by these unwelcoming gestures of both girls, David took his seat beside Joyce, who reassuringly took a hold of his hand.

"First of all, I'm really sorry for how you found out about us. It wasn't right to keep it a secret from you." Joyce began the talk.

Max could feel how Chloe's entire body clenched as her mom started to talk. She knew that, especially after such a shitty school day, her girlfriend was already on the edge.

' _Right now this idea of making a junkyard our new lair doesn't sound that bad. We both could use some thrashing. Ugh, it sucks talking about this, but Joyce is right. If we don't talk this through it will fuck up everything.'_

"How long is this thing already going on between you and Mr. Moustache?"

"Two months."

"Two fucking months?! Are you shitting me?" Chloe yelled, her fists hitting the table, startling everyone else.

Despite her daughter's outburst, Joyce tried to hold her composure and calm down the situation. "Chloe, I always wanted to tell you, but…I feared your reaction; that you wouldn't understand."

"What isn't there to understand? You are horny, that's all." Chloe mentioned cynically, now ignoring her mother.

"I have feelings, too, Chloe!" the blonde woman yelled back, her eyes welling up upon the hurting words of her own daughter. "You need to believe me that I loved your father very much. So much, that he left a very big hole in my heart as he passed on. I see you and Max…" For a short moment her voice failed. Max saw how she was fighting internally. For the young girl, Chloe's mom always seemed so strong. Like nothing could bring her to fall. But right now, Joyce gave them a glimpse of how she really felt inside. "You always had Max to cope everything, but I…"

As a sob escaped the woman's mouth and David soothingly embraced her shoulder, Chloe's expression changed in merely microseconds. The blonde girl leaned in, grabbed her mom's hand and squeezed it softly. "You always had me and Maxi, mom."

"Not for this, Chloe." Joyce responded, wiping the wet lines from her cheeks with the back of her hand. "I can't lay all my troubles on you two. You're still kids and I'm glad to keep most of the problems away from you."

"And what about the diner? I thought it makes you happy and helps you."

"The diner is a dream that came true, thanks to you. Especially after I never got the chance of becoming a teacher. But it doesn't fill my heart, Chloe. It just distracts me. I need and I want love in my life. I think you of all should understand this."

Silence occurred for some time as Chloe was in deep thoughts. Max somehow understood why Joyce wanted a relationship; why she wanted love in her life. Having someone to love was a very strong anchor when the world was upside down. She understood this after she'd shared her burden with Chloe.

"I have one condition," Chloe spoke, shifting her stern glare between her mom and David.

"Name it!"

"David accepts me and Max just as we are, or else he can fuck off!"

"Chloe," he spoke up, "I never had any growl against…"

"That's not what she meant." Joyce interrupted him mid-sentence, touching his arm softly. But all she earned was a puzzled expression. "Chloe and Max are…very close."

"I don't understand. I already know that they are friends and-"

"Ugh, fuck it!" Chloe sighed in annoyance, leaned towards Max and gave her a long kiss. A kiss they longed for the whole day.

This was the first time Max and Chloe deliberately shared a kiss in front of a stranger. The small girl's first reaction was shock and panic, but somehow Chloe's lips calmed her down immediately, so that she closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment, feeling almost disappointed as the kiss was eventually over. For some moments, both girls gazed at each other deeply.

"I love you!" Chloe whispered softly, giving her girlfriend another small kiss on her freckled nose.

"I love you, too, Chlo!" Max exhaled, her body flooded with joy and love. But it was instantly replaced by embarrassment as Joyce cleared her throat, reminding them that they weren't alone.

"That close." mentioned Chloe with a wry smirk as she saw how David's mouth was agape. "Any problems with that?"

"David?" Joyce said after her boyfriend still hadn't spoken one word. But instead of receiving an answer, David stood up and wanted to leave. "David!" Chloe's mom shouted, making him stop for a moment. "If you don't agree with this then…then it's over, because I'll always stand to my daughter and Max. Please," she pleaded eventually, "don't do this to me! Don't force me make this choice!"

He stood there for some time, not moving; not saying one word; until he continued his way to the front door.

Completely infuriated by this behavior and the painful effect it had on her mom, Chloe jumped up and followed him.

"HEY!" she yelled and grabbed the broad man's shoulder tightly in order to make him facing her. His expression was sad, but somehow emotionless, too. "Listen, you little piece of shit," she hissed angrily, "I don't give a fuck if you saved Maxi's life or not, but if you break my mom's heart I'm gonna beat the shit out of ya! What's your fucking problem anyway?"

And once again, he stayed silent for some time. "It's complicated." was his plain answer, after which he continued his way and left the house, Chloe still following him.

As she caught up with him once more, the blonde made him turn around again and slapped him in his face. "You are hurting my mom's feelings, dipshit. That's not complicated, that's just fucked up! She already lost one man in her life, do you want her to go through this again? Is this one condition really that bad and unbearable for a _wannabe-badass ex-soldier_?"

Mocking him with the fact that he had been a soldier, David's expression changed from sad to agitated. "It's not that simple, Chloe!" he said with gritted teeth.

"Then fucking explain it! And if not to me, then to my mom, 'cause she deserves to know why she gets shit canned!"

Without another word, David turns around and walks to his car. Right before he's able to open the door, Joyce came out of the house, her eyes red-cried, but burning with fury, while Max followed her stat. "David Madsen, if you leave, then we're done!"

For a short moment he paused, frozen in his movement, but then he opened the car door, embarked his vehicle and started the engine. All the anger that was radiated by Joyce before, vanished in an instant as she covered her face and began to cry again.

Her hate-filled eyes still fixed on the running muscle car, Chloe walked over to her mother and embraced her shoulder. Max did the same from the other side.

Suddenly, the engine died and David opened the passenger's door. "Joyce," he spoke from inside the car, gazing at the blonde woman, who had raised her sight, "please get in, I…I need to tell you something…in private."

Joyce hesitated, an understandable reaction in this situation. Nobody would've guessed that it was Chloe's soft push and a reassuring nod that convinced her mother to comply David's wish. With slow steps she walked over to the car and got inside, leaving the two girls standing on the lawn.

"You've such a good heart, Chlo!" Max said softly, as she rested her head on her girlfriend's shoulder and watched with her how Joyce and David had a calm conversation.

"Pft, I would've loved to give him another bitchslap. But if this dickhead makes mom happy, then who am I to stand in her way? Besides, as long as he doesn't try to be a father-figure to me, I'm fine with him."

"See," the smaller commented with a warm smile, "the kindest heart there is."

Scoffing upon the brunette's statement, Chloe gave her a short hug. "C'mon, Maxi, let's get inside and plunder the fridge or else I'm gonna starve!"

"Amen!"

* * *

After they made themselves some sandwiches, Max and Chloe got comfortable on the couch, watching a copy of one of their old, favorite childhood TV-shows while they ate the delicious food.

"Damn," scoffed Chloe, chewing on some food, "I can't believe we really loved to watch this shit."

"Hey," responded Max, giving her girlfriend a slight push, " _Hawt Dawg Man_ isn't that bad. Besides, the video games were pretty fun."

"Casual Jump 'n' Runs, Max. Fun, but casual."

"You're only jealous because I was always better than you, dork."

"Were not!" Chloe said, straightening herself.

"Oh yes, I was. Wanna bet?" Max now replied with a smirk.

A big, toothy grin was formed on Chloe's face as she jumped up. The same mischievous grin that always appeared whenever they both were about to have a competition. "I get the console and the games, and you clean up."

"Figures that I have to clean up." The brunette girl mentioned, rolling with her blue eyes.

"Hey, you know my room," replied Chloe, already on her way to her bed room, "And I'm the only one who knows where…"

As the front door got opened with a loud click, both, Max and Chloe, stopped their doings and gazed at Joyce, who entered the house with a sad and almost unreadable expression. They both saw how David's car drove by and away.

"Mom?" Chloe gasped, immediately heading towards the blonde woman. Max did the same a second later. "Mom? Is everything alright? Are you okay?" she asked with concern, fearing the answer.

Joyce sighed deeply, her voice trembling a bit. "David…" she began, but had to pause once more, "David's gonna be fine with your relationship. He's very sorry for how he reacted. It's…he had a very hard childhood and…the war…" With another inhale she touched both girl's shoulders, glaring at them intensely, "Chloe, Max. You two have to believe me that he's a good man. A good and caring man, who already experienced a lot of…difficult situations in his life."

"Joyce." This time it was Max, who spoke. "W-we all went through difficult times here." She glimpsed at Chloe, who returned the eye contact, and grabbed her hand, giving it a soft squeeze.

"Yeah, we all went through a lotta shit, mom, and if he means that much to you, then we're fine with it."

To their own surprise, Joyce pulled the two young girls closer for a tight hug, making them both giggle. "Thank you, my little sweethearts! Thank you so much!"

They all broke the hug after a moment, and while Chloe brushed over her clothes like dusting herself off and Max just stood there, not knowing how to react in such a moment, Joyce wiped away another single droplet and smiled at her daughter and her girlfriend warmly.

"You know what, girls? Tonight I'll order us some big Pizzas. How does that sound?"

"Awesome!"

"Om nom nom!"

"I'm glad you approve." Chloe's mom responded with a big smile, grabbed the phone and walked into the kitchen, ordering the pizza.

"C'mon, Maxi, we still have a game to play!"

Max was just about to continue to clean up as, suddenly, her phone began to chime. "Damn!" she cursed silently as she gazed at the display.

"Who is it?"

"My mom," the younger girl said, followed by big sigh, "Guess I'm about to get my über-rage."

"Dude, gimme your phone!" Chloe literally ordered her with a stretched out hand.

"What? Why?"

"I'm taking the heat. You already had enough shit today."

"And you didn't?" Max asked back with furrowed eyebrows.

Slowly, Chloe leaned in as if she wanted to give her girlfriend another kiss, but instead she gave her a sharp "Nope!", and snatched the still ringing phone out of her hand.

"Chloe, no!" the smaller girl protested and wanted to get back her smartphone, but was kept at a distance by Chloe with an outstretched arm.

"Maxi's private secretary Chloe Price is speaking!" the blonde spoke into the phone after she took the call. "Hi Vanessa! Yes, Maxi's here…No she can't…'Cause I won't let her…I know you're not in the mood for jokes, but…you…dammit, just listen to me for a sec, will ya?!"

Astonished how Chloe went all bossy on her mother, Max's struggle abated and she just stared at her girlfriend in awe.

"It wasn't Maxi's fault, okay? It was me. Everything. The whole messed up situation, my doing. So, if you wanna rage on someone then rage on me…She took the blame, because Prescott blackmailed my mom. Damn, didn't she tell you already?"

For the next minutes, Chloe told Vanessa everything that had happened. Max stood beside her and watched how she winced every time her mother chided her.

"I-I…yeah. I understand…No, I promise. It won't happen again…Yeah, bye!" With a serious glare, Chloe handed the phone to Max, who took it with some hesitation. "Here, your mom wants to talk to you."

"Hi, mom!"

[Vanessa]: Maxine, is everything, that Chloe just told me, true?

"Mh-hm, it really happened like this. Listen, mom, I'm sorry, okay? _We_ are sorry!"

[Vanessa]: (sighing) I know. Just…don't do it again. I'm proud of you, though, that you did such a brave deed, but…it was also very stupid and reckless. You could've messed up your whole future with this!

"I-I know…I…"

[Vanessa]: Max, we care about you very much! Please, don't do something like this ever again, not even for Chloe! Your future is everything that matters!

"Chloe matters much more to me."

[Vanessa]: Maxine, sadly love - especially young love – isn't something that lasts forever necessarily.

"But Chloe and I will." Max raised her sight and looked at Chloe with a soft smile. "Forever and ever."

[Vanessa]: (sighing deeply) Max, at one point in your life you need to think about yourself, eventually. Just…think about it, okay?

"I will, mom."

[Vanessa]: Take care, munchkin! We'll skype tomorrow.

"Yeah, give dad a big hug from me."

[Vanessa]: I'll do. G'night, Max!

"G'night, mom!"

Max canceled the call and before she even knew what was going on, Chloe had embraced her tightly and whispered in her ear. "Forever and ever! I love you soooo much!"

Both stayed like this for a long moment, spilling some tears of relief as the stress, the worries and all the uncertainties of the last two days fell off of them. Now they finally had the chance to take a break and this intimate hug marked the beginning of a peaceful and carefree night.


	6. Chapter 5: B-Day, BBQ and a Bet

**Chapter 5: B-Day, BBQ and a Bet**

 _March 10_ _th_ _2009_

 _Dear Journal,_

 _another school day is over, but this time everything went smoothly. No meltdown, no Hargrove, no Jasmine, no bullying; just boring classes, a well-deserved lunch-break-cuddling-session with Chloe and a lot of chatting with Taylor. She's so nice to me and I almost feel bad about that I raged on her. But, since yesterday, she somehow seems to be a little…I don't know…standoff-ish? It sometimes feels like she's trying to impress me, but also tries to keep some distance between us. Maybe…maybe I'm just thinking about it too much and shouldn't interpret anything into it._

 _And there's something else that bugs me since yesterday. After watching this stupid hentai, something happened to me. Chloe and I had a moment where we looked at each other so deeply, and I…I suddenly felt a need…for Chloe. It was so scary and awesome at the same time, no wonder I had a panic-attack. I thought about it the whole night and, sadly, this is where I started to cry again…UGH!_

 _Oh my little ragbag of future kinky thoughts, I tried to imagine me and Chloe doing this stuff that I saw in this fucking hentai, and…I couldn't. I just couldn't! In my fantasy we hug and kiss each other, like we always do, and then I tried to think about us being naked and…zip!_

 _***Insert coin if you want to continue***_

 _But I don't have any fucking change!_

 _Then I tried it again, this time with clothes on and once more, zip!_

 _Last night I felt so desperate, because I know that Chloe's probably way past that point and I…maybe I'm just not ready, yet. Or – and that was the point I started to lose it - that's where my thing for girls ends. Hugs and kisses, yes. Sex and intimate touching, no. You see, my little junkyard of puberty thoughts: doubts, doubts, doubts. Doubts here, doubts there, doubts everywhere. I wish I could be so secure about everything like Chloe. She always seems to know what to do. Or does she? See, another doubt. Ugh, puberty sucks!_

 _Maybe I should just overcome my stupid insecurity and ask Chloe. She's one-and-a-half year older than me and one year ahead when it comes to this stuff. But it's so embarrassing to talk about this. I just hope that Chloe stays patient with me and doesn't elope with her hentai mag. Can you even be jealous of a mag? On one hand, just the thought of Chloe getting feelings from this thing bothers me, but on the other hand I'm kinda glad that she keeps herself busy with that while I need my time. It's complicated. Life is just…awkward._

 _So far, my good ol' journal._

 _Max Caulfield, the pubescent menace, signing off._

* * *

"BIRTHDAY!" Chloe cheered as she woke up to the sound of one of Max's songs.

Without wasting another second, the blonde jumped up and darted towards the door. Her destination: Max's room. The reason: getting her early birthday kiss. But as she opened the door, Chloe surprisingly got embraced and tackled back onto her bed by Max.

"Happy Birthday, Chlo!" the smaller girl almost shrieked with excitement and pressed her lips on her beloved Chloe's ones.

After the first astonishment had slowly abated, the blonde returned the hug and brushed with her hands over the on her laying girl's back and neck. Deep feelings of love and desire emerged from deep within her body, letting her slightly moan and wish for more. But Chloe knew that this would become rapidly too much for her girlfriend, so she softly broke the kiss and gazed into Max's blue doe-eyes deeply with a warm smile, while she softly brushed over her freckled cheek.

"Damn, that was one hell of a birthday-kiss!" the now 15-year-old girl spoke softly.

"Well, you deserve only the best!" replied Max quietly.

"Hmm, and I thought I already got that last Thanksgiving?"

Max lifted herself up, her cheeks slightly blushed in embarrassment. "I-I don't know…I…"

Gazing at her with determination and the sweetest, reassuring smile, Chloe pressed her lips on her girlfriend's once more. "You are the best, Maxi, and I love you very much. So much that I always get so disgustingly mushy."

"Y-yeah," Max giggled, "You're so sweet!"

"Blech!" was Chloe's answer as she pushed the smaller girl off her, softly, and stood up, "Please don't call me sweet, that's just…"

Out of a sudden, Max leaned in and licked with her tongue over Chloe's cheek. "Hmm, that's funny…you taste very sweet, though."

As the blonde stared at small brunette, her mouth opening and closing, lacking any words, Max chuckled loudly and left the room. It took Chloe some time to finally regain control over her stunned body again.

' _What just happened?'_ she asked herself internally, while she got up and changed into her daily clothes, _'One moment she acted so shyly and the other…ugh, I'm busting my ass with this. Maxi is still Maxi, and after everything that went down I shouldn't be surprised that it changed her. Besides, it felt kinda good as she licked over my cheek…and it was actually funny, so I take it with a smile.'_

"Ma-ax! Chloe! Breakfast's ready!" it chimed from downstairs.

Not wasting another second, Chloe stormed out of her room, almost colliding with Max, who equally was running downstairs for the so much wanted food.

"First!" Max cheered as she jumped on her chair, receiving a sternly glare from Chloe.

"Nu-uh, Caulfield! You didn't say _race ya_ , and besides: the birthday-girl always wins!"

Seeing the smugly grin of her girlfriend, Max just rolled with her eyes and pouted. "Dork!"

"Good morning, sweethearts!" said Joyce as she came out of the kitchen with two mugs in her hand and big smile on her face, "And where's my little birthday-girl?"

"Morning, Joyce!"

"Morning, Mom! And I'm not little."

"I know," Joyce replied, pulling her daughter from her seat to embrace her into a tight hug, "Happy Birthday, sweetie-pie!"

"Mo-om! No mush in the morning!"

As her mom backed away a bit, she looked at Chloe deeply with a wry smile, her eyes a bit welled-up. "I can't believe it. 15 years and look how big you've become. You're about to graduate from Junior High School, are having a girlfriend now and refuse to stop growing." A melancholy sigh emerged from her lips. "I just wish William could be here to see it."

Strong feelings of sadness and grief flooded Chloe's mind, but instead of freaking out, she took her mom into a tight embrace again. "I wish that, too!" she whispered, followed by a sniff and tears.

It were days like these; days out of the routine; that reminded Chloe of her dad and how much she actually missed him. Despite everything that had happened the days before, Chloe was just glad that she still had her mom, and as Max now embraced her too, a sob of pure relief and happiness escaped her mouth. She wasn't alone and never would be as long as Max and Joyce were in her life. "I love you guys so much!" she said and broke the hug, wiping away the wet lines on her face with the back of her hand.

"We love you too, Chlo!" replied Max, with a soft smile, which turned into a mischievous grin, "And you'll love us even more after you got your presents."

"Presents?!" Chloe gasped with wide open, sparkling eyes, the sadness entirely replaced by giddiness. "Gimmegimmegimme!"

"Chloe, Max, you know the rules: No presents before school!"

"But Mo-om, I'm depressed right now and need some cheer-up!"

"C'mon, Joyce, just one…please!"

"Alright," she sighed, "But that's the only exception, because I dampened the mood."

Chloe and Max shared a victorious toothy smirk, and without waiting another second, Max reached inside her cam bag and brought forth a squared object with the size of a CD case, packed in giftwrap.

"Happy Birthday, Chloe!" she cheered, reaching it to Chloe, who took it with awe.

Meanwhile, Joyce arched her eyebrows and gazed at Max with a chiding glare. "Maxine Caulfield, had you planned to give Chloe her gift at school?"

Scolding herself internally for being too obvious, Max blushed deep-red and looked at her feet. "Uhm…k-kinda…"

"I'll be damned! Six months ago you wouldn't even have thought about such sneaky ventures. Sometimes I have the feeling that Chloe's wild side's rubbing off on you."

"C'mon, mom," Chloe replied as she tried to unwrap the gift with her teeth, "You know she needs a bit Chloe to come out of her cocoon. Besides…damn, Caulfield, you wrapped up this fucker pretty tight!"

Giving her daughter the sourest expression, Joyce reached behind, took a knife from the kitchen counter and handed it to Chloe.

The wrapping between her teeth once more, the blonde moved her sight from her mother to the knife and back again for a few more times, before she took it to finally open her present. "Uh…thanks!" she said with some embarrassment, because she hadn't thought about this option herself.

"You're welcome…this makes one dollar for the swear jar, then."

"Ugh, Mo-om! I already gave you 20 bucks!"

"And this was your 21st curse since then. Am I right, Max?"

With a wry smile, her right arm touching the left one, Max gaze was still fixed at the ground. "Sorry, Chlo, but your mom's right."

"Fine!" the blonde sighed, "Cut it from my allowance. Now let's get this shhh-ining gift open!"

Two cuts later, the wrapping finally came undone, revealing a CD, which Chloe almost dropped as she gasped for some air.

"Th-that's the new Firewalk album!" she whispered in awe, rising her gaze from the CD to look at a wide, toothy smiling Max, who had her hands behind her back, "Where did you get this from? I-it's not supposed to be out for another week."

"Well, y'know, my dad knows a guy, who knows a guy, who knows the band's manager, and he owed my dad a favor, and…yeah, he got me that album. But that's not everything. Open it!"

After Chloe had opened the case, she almost dropped it again. "No way!" she shrieked as she pulled out two pieces of paper, "Tickets for the Firewalk show in Portland?!"

"Happy birthday, Chlo!"

Max already expected to be hugged by her girlfriend like crazy, but to her own surprise, Chloe tackled her to the ground with a scream of joy and covered her freckled face with what felt like a thousand kisses, saying _thank you_ between every one of them.

"Okay, you two, now stop the schmoosing and eat some breakfast or else you gonna be late for school!" said Joyce, pulling Chloe off her girlfriend.

"Ugh, Mo-om!"

* * *

Besides of the ordinary problems like boredom, the time being separated or the annoying presence of other students, this school day had been pretty relaxing for Max and Chloe. Classes, meeting during lunch break for some cuddling; the last set of classes and eventually back home.

Right after they arrived, the two girls drove with Joyce to the grocery store to get everything for Chloe's birthday barbeque. Despite that she was the birthday girl and her mom offered to call David, Chloe insisted on operating the grill all by herself while Max assisted her and Joyce prepared some additional food.

"Do you know how to work this thing?" Max asked as she and Chloe were gazing at the grill like it was a complex machine from the far future.

"Well, theoretically. I watched my dad sometimes when he used it. And twice he left me in charge."

"Guess there's only one way to find out then."

"Yup!"

Chloe took the gridiron off the grill and handed it to Max, who scrunched up her nose as she saw the thick layer of old grease and held it with her thumb and index finger away from her body. "Eww, shouldn't we clean it first?"

"What?!" replied Chloe, ripping the grid off Max's hand, "Dude, that's the secret ingredient that gives the meat its special flavor!"

Giving her girlfriend a stinky eye, Max crossed her arms. "Special taste or not, I'm not gonna eat a thing that has been grilled on this grid!"

"Fine, Miss Fancy-Pansy," sighed Chloe, rolling with her eyes, "Then go and clean it while I start this fucker here."

While Max grabbed the grid, rolling with her eyes, Chloe focused entirely on the grill again.

' _Okay, how am I supposed to get this thing started? Hmm…shit, Dad showed it to me once, but I can't remember the details. Ugh, fuck it, I'm a straight-A student, so igniting this shit shouldn't be a problem. First, we need some fuel.'_

With a groan, Chloe picked up the big bag of charcoal, "Ugh, fuck, this shit's heavy!" and filled the grill with the black fuel, spilling a lot of it on the ground.

"Okay, fuel: check! Next: some accelerator to…well, accelerate this shit."

She took the bottle of petroleum and read the label.

' _Let's see…blah, blah, blah safety…blahblahblah…flammable…yadda, yadda, yadda…out of children's reach…ugh, I just wanna know how much I should use of this stuff!'_

"Hey Chlo, look!" chimed Max's voice and as Chloe looked up she saw her girlfriend with a wide grin and a sparkling gridiron in her hands. "What do you think?"

"Wow, you literally scrubbed every bit of flavor off that thing."

"Better than getting diarrhea!" retorted Max and put the grid aside, "How's it going?"

"I just try to find out how much of this stuff I need to let it burn."

Gazing over Chloe's shoulder, now both girls scanned the label of the bottle for the needed piece of information, but to no avail.

"Hmm, I don't know. Maybe you should ask your mom." mentioned Max with a shrug.

"Yeah, sure and let her wipe my bum while I'm at it," the older girl snipped back, very much reluctant to ask an adult. "You know what? A lot helps a lot!"

With these words, Chloe opened the plastic bottle and poured almost half of it over the charcoal.

"Uhm…Chloe, isn't this a bit too much?" said Max, already taking a step back.

"Don't worry, Maxi," Chloe answered with a reassuring smirk, "You know I've got an A in Chem and won last year's science fair. Everything's gonna be fine! Besides, I'm so freakin' hungry already that I can't wait anymore. Now take a step back and reach me 'em Badonkadongs!"

"Badonka-what?"

"You know…these long, wooden lighter…thingies."

"You mean matches."

"Yes…matches…gimmegimmegimme!"

Max handed Chloe the box with the long matches and took some more steps back. With a wide, mischievous smirk Chloe ignited one of the matches and brought it close to the soaked coal. It had almost reached it as a gust of wind extinguished the flame.

"What the…?" the blonde said with a frown, ignited the next one and moved it more cautiously towards the fuel.

SWOOSH!

A big fireball emerged from the grill. While Max had to shield her eyes from the intense heat, Chloe threw herself to the ground with a shriek.

Without wasting another second, Max jumped towards her on the ground laying girlfriend as soon as the heat was gone.

"Chloe!"

* * *

' _Stupid grill!'_ thought Chloe while she was poking the food with her fork. She raised her sight, seeing Max and Joyce grin as they ate, their gazes focused on the meal in front of them.

"What's so fucking funny?" she blurted out, only receiving a shrug from her girlfriend.

"It's very tasty, Chlo." answered Max, who had to suppress a chuckle as she looked at Chloe's red, eyebrow-less face, earning herself the most pissed-off expression Chloe had ever given her.

"Hardyharhar, Max. Having fun?"

As Max just nodded and whispered an audible "I told you so!" the blonde almost jumped up, but her mom's now stern expression kept her in place.

"Maybe that'll teach you to handle such stuff with care in future! Max and I are just glad that nothing worse happened to you. Now stop pouting and eat, you did really great and it tastes very good!"

"Yeah," Chloe sighed in defeat, accepting her fate and began to eat.

Max stood up, moved her chair and sat down beside her girlfriend, giving her beloved Chloe a soft peck on the cheek and cuddled her very close. "I'm just glad that you're okay!" she said quietly, painting a soft smile on the blondes slightly burned face.

* * *

Their breathing was heavy and sweat was running down their faces. Max and Chloe lied in bed, both giggling and their fingers intertwined.

"Dude, this was so awesome!" panted Chloe with a wide grin, her entire body still pumped with adrenaline.

"I knew you'd like it. And…uhm…I-I kinda liked it, too."

"What? Who are you and what have you done with Max Caulfield?"

Giving her girlfriend a soft slap on the shoulder, Max stood up and stretched her from exhaustion aching body. "Oh c'mon, Chlo. Just because I start to like your music and thrashed through the entire Firewalk album with you doesn't mean that I'm another person. Besides, you never complained about the Mix-CD I made you over a year ago, and this thing was stuffed with my music."

"Touché!"

Max let out a big yawn as she walked towards the door. "Sorry, Chlo, but I'm totally busted. I'm gonna take a shower and hit the sack."

Quickly, Chloe got up, wrapped her arms around Max and gave her a very intense kiss. "Thanks for this awesome birthday! I love you so much!"

"I love you, too! G'night!"

"Nightynight, Maxi!"

As soon as Max had left the room, Chloe let herself fall on the bed again, gazing at the ceiling with a smile. She felt so happy, like nothing could go wrong anymore. Destiny had tried to separate them, but failed. And now Chloe was sure that nothing would be able to stop them.

* * *

Saturday. The first school week was over, and to Max's own surprise even without a near-death experience. Though Chloe had to work at the diner on weekends, they would definitely have more time for each other. In order to maximize the time together, Max even decided to join Joyce and Chloe at the diner. And while her girlfriend cooked, cleaned and waited tables, Max made her homework, took some photos, had the one or other chit-chat with Chloe and even helped her out where she could. Eventually, time went by in a fast pace and Chloe's shift ended.

With a wide smile on her face, Chloe emerged from the kitchen with two plates in her hands. She made her way to Max's booth, placed their food on the table and jumped smoothly in her seat. "Let's munch or I'll eat you instead!" said the strawberry-blonde with a wink, taking a big bite from her Cheeseburger.

"You wish!" replied Max, stuffing some fries in her mouth. "So, what are we gonna do today?"

After gulping down the food in her mouth and washing it down with Max's coke, Chloe leaned forward, her lips forming the typical mischievous smirk. "Okay, listen up Maxi! This weekend's gonna be totally amazeballs! Justin told me yesterday that they finished the renovation of the old skatepark down at the beach. So, we're gonna head home, I change my clothes, grab my board and then we're gonna thrash! Well…I'll do the thrashing and you'll take some amazing shots!"

"Sounds cool!"

"Waitwaitwait! It's getting even better. Tomorrow, I'll have the entire day off, 'cause my mom wants me to create a website for the diner and put it online. And the best thing is: I can do that in under two hours, AND I'm gonna use your pictures! Bottom-line: We'll have the whole day for us and you're gonna publish your first shots!"

From one moment to another, all color disappeared from Max's face as she realized what possible consequences could occur if Chloe would use her photos.

"Uhm, Maxi?"

Mustering all her willpower to suppress the emerging panic attack, Max closed her eyes, took some deep breathes and as she felt Chloe's warm hand on hers, the brunette finally managed to gain entire control over her mind again. "B-but my shots aren't that good…I-I mean…"

"Don't gimme that bullshit, Maxi. Your shots ARE amazing. Even mom literally pushes me to use your photos. C'mon, pretty please!"

Taking another deep inhale, Max sighed eventually, followed by a quiet "Fine."

"Really?!"

"Yeah."

"Awesome!" cheered Chloe, jumped out of the booth and took Max into a tight embrace, making her chuckle because of this outburst of happiness. As Chloe broke the hug, both stared into each others sparkling eyes for some time, wishing for nothing more than to share a kiss. But both girls also knew that this was impossible as long as there were other people around, so Chloe decided to break this romantic moment. "C'mon, Maxi," she spoke with a wry smile, "Let's get my board and thrash the new skatepark!"

* * *

Of course the first thing Max and Chloe did after arriving at their home was to make a bit out before Chloe changed into some more comfortable clothes and grabbed her skateboard.

During the whole way down to the beach the blonde already performed some tricks. Seeing Chloe on a skateboard had always been something calming and solemn for Max. On a board her girlfriend was in her element. Wild. Free. Living on the edge. Showing authorities the symbolically middle finger. Be a Punk. That was Chloe's true nature. That was the person she was in love with.

"Do a tree-flip!" Max said, readying her cam and without any second thought Chloe performed a perfect tree-flip. The shutter clicked a few times as picture after picture was taken by the brunette.

"Y'know, Maxi," Chloe spoke as she stopped right beside her girlfriend, who was just checking the last taken pictures on the display of her cam, "I think you can already make a huge Chloe-Price-Expo, based on the high number of photos you already took of me."

"You're just the perfect model, Chlo. Beautiful, astatic, athletic, just…" Max gazed deeply into Chloe's blue eyes. Her cheeks were already blushed, her hands shaking and as she felt this intense tingling feeling emerging from her stomach, the brunette was only able to whisper this last word. "…perfect."

Softly, Chloe took her girlfriend into a tight embrace, speaking silently into her ear, "I'd love to kiss you right now." She took a deep inhale, preparing her next words carefully. Chloe knew that she was about to trespass unsafe grounds, especially now that Max tended to have panic attacks as soon as an unknown or stressful situation appeared. "Max, when we're back at my place I…I-I need to ask you something…a-about us. Just…I just want you to know beforehand, y-y'know."

At first puzzled by Chloe's nervousness and the stuttering in her voice, Max looked into her face. Because being nervous was so unusual for her girlfriend, the brunette instantly knew that it had to be something about their relationship. It didn't take much to figure out that Chloe probably wanted to get even more intimate, her averting gaze even underlining it even more.

There was no doubt that Chloe was ready for more. But was Max, too? She actually didn't know.

' _Maybe it's for the best to always talk things through.'_ she thought, giving Chloe a slight nod. From this point on both walked side by side in silence. Whereas Max glimpsed at her girlfriend from time to time. _'I'd love to do more, but it's such a huge step and I'm still kinda uncomfortable with myself. What if…'_

"Maxi?"

Her train of deep thoughts suddenly interrupted, Max didn't know what else to do but to just reply a panicky "Y-yeah?"

"You know that I didn't mean…y'know… _that_ , right?"

Now even more surprised, Max just stopped in her tracks and glanced at Chloe quizzically. "Huh?!"

"Max…" the blonde began, letting out a big sigh. She checked their surroundings, making sure that nobody was around to overhear their conversation. "What I mean is our coming out. I love you so much and sometimes I just wanna touch and kiss you and show the world what an amazing girlfriend I have, but…" Her gaze drops as she let out another exhale of frustration. "I'm sorry, Max. J-just forget it. It was a stupid idea. I mean, I'm not even ready myself and…FUCK!"

Before Chloe was able to entirely freak out, Max took her into another tight hold, speaking softly and soothingly. "I know it's hard, and I'm so sorry that I make things even more complicated. But I promise you, as soon as I'm ready we're gonna make it legit!"

"I love you, Maxi!"

"I love you, too, Chlo!" Taking a step back, Max gave Chloe wry smile and a soft push. "Now c'mon, you big goop! Let's destroy some rails, 'cause I definitely wanna make a skate portfolio!"

"You're such a photo-nerd!" chuckled Chloe in reply as she grabbed her board and both kept on walking.

* * *

Since skateboarding became more and more popular, Arcadia Bay decided in the mid-nineties to build a skatepark in order to keep the skateboarders out of town and as far away from the tourists as possible. Over the years the interest in skateboarding among the teenagers abated and their number decreased, until only those remained who did it with passion and not just because it was cool to own a skateboard. Sadly, this lead to the circumstance that the town refused to keep the park in shape until it was shut down because of safety risks.

Using the internet, everyone in Arcadia Bay who liked to have some wheels under their feet signed a petition to bring the skatepark back to its former glory and, eventually, the town gave in and financed a project.

Two years later reconstruction was finally finished and the park open for everyone who wanted to have fun. Already knowing the old vicinities, Max and Chloe were giddy to see it again.

"Fuck me, look at this awesome place!" Chloe cheered, flinging her arm around Max's shoulder as they closed in. "Look at that. A half-pipe, rails, steps, ledges…they even added a fucking pool!"

"Perfect for some nice tricks. My cam's up 'n' ready!"

"Yo, Justin, 'sup?" Chloe yelled over to some boys who were chilling on a bench.

Justin, a lanky blond boy with glasses and typical skater attire, stood up and greeted the taller blonde with a complicated handshake. "Yo, Chloster, we're about to destroy some rails. Trevor already smashed his balls as he tried to ride the _pit of doom_." he said, signing over to the pool.

"Well, good for me that I'm a girl. C'mon, Maxi, let's say holla to the others."

After some more – in Max's eyes – excessive complicated handshakes and the one or other small chit-chat, the young brunette sat down to do some final check of her equipment.

"Hey Maxi, I'm gonna do some warm-up before we start the photo-session, okay?" said Chloe, the skateboard under her arm and already restless out of anticipation.

"Have fun!" replied Max with a soft smile, wishing for nothing more than to give her girlfriend a peck on the cheek.

With a big, toothy grin, Chloe jumped on the board and tested every obstacle on the course. Her posse cheered and yelled every time the blonde performed a trick. Actually wanting to take some pictures later, Max was so in awe about her girlfriend's skills that she raised her cam and took the first shots.

' _Wowser, Chloe's an amazing skater! I wonder if she already thought about doing this as a pro.'_

After her last jump, Chloe headed towards Max and came to a halt right in front of her. She was panting heavily and a bit of sweat covered her forehead, but her lips were forming a wide smile. "Dude, this park's the shit! How did I do?"

"Amazing!" answered Max, already wanting to look at the taken pictures with Chloe. But before they were able to do so, the sound of clapping hands let them turn around to look at an older boy with black hair that was tamed by what seemed like a ton of hair gel.

"Wow, Price. I must say I'm almost impressed. Almost." he spoke with an arrogance dripping tone.

"What the fucking hell do you want, Graves? Want me to bitchslap you like I did your sister?" retorted the blonde, her eyes piercing daggers.

"My sister," he chuckled, closing in on the girls with slow steps, "My sister's an idiot and deserved what she got. But…" He came to a halt right in front of Chloe, showing everyone that he was taller. "…This doesn't mean that such a lowlife like you can simply beat her up without consequences."

"Back off, asshole!" Max suddenly intervened to everyone's surprise, her entire being in a _Chloe-protection-mode_ , and shoved the boy away.

"Oooh, feisty!" Graves scoffed with amusement, but then got dead serious in an instant. He grabbed Max by her collar, but without wasting a second Chloe jumped in and shoved him away again.

"If you touch her ever again, then…"

"Then what, Price?" For a moment, while everybody was waiting for a witty comment by Chloe, there was silence, only broken by the sounds of nature. But instead, it was Terry Graves' scoff that chimed. "I knew it, just empty words. And that brings me to the reason why I'm here. You still owe me a bet, Price."

"I owe you shit!"

"Wrong! You told me that you could do anything that I could ask on a skateboard."

"Well, she actually can, bro." Justin threw in, "She just destroyed any obstacle in this park without a single mistake."

"Every obstacle, except one." Terry remarked and pointed at an old, rusty rail that separated the skatepark from the beach ten feet below, earning him a lot of gasps and comments.

"Dude, are you insane?!" now Trevor intervened, "Nobody rides the _death rail_!"

"Well, she said that she could skate everything, not me," Graves added with a shrug, then giving Chloe an more than devilish grin, "But I guess that was just some hot air, too."

Now provoked, Chloe made a step towards Terry, blurting in his face. "You got your bet, motherfucker!"

"Chloe, no!" Max immediately threw in, already having a bad feeling about this.

"Aww, is your little friend shitting her diapers already?" the black-haired boy teased even more.

Her head turning beet-red, Chloe took another step forward and grabbed Terry by his collar, who, however, kept on grinning because he knew that he had won. "I'm gonna slide this fucking rail and after I did it, you and your ugly-as-fuck family will leave me and Maxi alone, got it?" she hissed with gritted teeth.

"Alright," he answered, almost failing to suppress his amusement, "But if you can't do it, I'm gonna get your fancy new board."

And with an evil snicker Terry Graves walked over to the benches and sat down, waiting with crossed arms for the show to begin.

"You're not gonna slide this fucking rail!" Max said with a shivering, fear-dripping voice.

Once more, Chloe glimpsed at the old, fragile, metallic construction and then into Max's watery, pleading doe-eyes. She remembered that last time someone tried to slide this rail it lead to a ten-feet-drop and a lot of broken bones for this poor guy, and this happened a bunch of years of less corrosion ago.

"C'mon, Price! I'll even add 150 bucks so that you can buy your little crybaby there a bunch of new diapers if she's shitting her panties."

Hearing those insulting words against her girlfriend again, Chloe's anger took over. "I'm gonna shove this rail up his fucking ass!" she hissed, grabbed her board and made her way to the far side of park.

The intense mixture of anger and worry about her beloved Chloe now increasing even more, Max wrapped her arms around her own body and began to sob. Something was wrong, she knew it. She felt it.

Chloe now stood on a quarterpipe in order to use it to gain enough speed for the slide, her gaze fixed on the rail. Her skater posse started to chant her name to cheer her on.

"Price! Price! Price!"

All this tension was almost too much for Max. Her whole body trembled and was on the brink of a collapse, but as Chloe rolled down the pipe her heart and breathing instantly stopped. She saw how the distance between her girlfriend and the _death rail_ became smaller and smaller with each second, and then she jumped and hit the rail, sliding it perfectly until a loud crack chimed and the whole constriction wobbled for a second. It wasn't much, but it was enough to let Chloe lose her balance. The fifteen-years-old girl fell, hit the rail hard with her neck, and impacted on the pavement where her body kept on rolling until it lost its momentum and came to a halt a few feet later.

The chanting stopped immediately and was replaced by silence and quiet curses. Only one person was laughing in malicious joy.

"That was really awesome!" Terry Graves cheered, but everyone just ignored him.

After overcoming her first shock, Max started to sprint towards her still on the ground laying, not moving girlfriend.

"CHLOE!" she yelled, hoping to receive at least a glimpse of life, but to no avail. As the young girl reached her she crouched down and began to brush over her face and her hair. Chloe's eyes were closed and neither was she moving nor responding to any of Max's touches.

"Chloe please, wake up!" Max sobbed, a constant stream of tears flowing down her cheeks.

Suddenly, Trevor crouched down on the opposite side and began to check Chloe's life signs. "She's still breathing and I can feel a pulse. Justin," he shouted over to the blonde boy, "Call an ambulance!"

"I'm on it, dude!" he replied, taking out his phone.

"She's gonna be fine." Trevor told Max with determination. But it didn't sooth her. If everything, Max felt bad that she didn't stop Chloe as she had the chance.

"Hey, crybaby," a most hated voice chimed from behind her, and as Max turned around she saw Terry Graves standing there, Chloe's skateboard in his hand and this ugly, devilish grin on his lips, "Tell this cunt my best regards, when she wakes up."

"Just fuck off, dude!" Trevor replied in order to get rid of him, but hearing these maleficent words and seeing this evil smile brought Max over the edge. She jumped up, clenched her fist and let it crash into Terry's face with full force, sending him whining to the ground.

"That's my girlfriend you're talking about, asshole!" she yelled at him, not caring that she just outed her relationship with Chloe. Now ignoring Terry, Max focused on Chloe again, keeping brushing through her hair while the wailing sound of sirens in the distance grew louder as the ambulance closed in.

* * *

During the whole ride to the hospital, Max stayed at Chloe's side, never leaving her and never breaking the contact between them. The emergency doctor told her that Chloe's neck was probably broken and that it was a miracle that she was still alive.

Right after they arrived at the hospital, Chloe was brought into surgery while Max had to wait in the waiting section. Thirty minutes later Joyce and David arrived and Max told them under tears what had happened.

Of course, Joyce didn't blame Max for what had happened. Both spend the next hours arm in arm, waiting for a message about Chloe's condition.

Finally, after 8 hours a doctor entered the waiting section and headed towards Joyce.

"Mrs. Price?" he asked, making everyone to stand up.

"How's she, doctor?"

"She's alive and not in a critical condition anymore, but…" the doctor took a deep inhale before he continued, "The damage on her spine and nerves were too severe. We tried to fix as much as possible, but there's a very high probability that your daughter is going to be paralyzed from her neck down permanently."

It was like a lightning had just struck Max. While Joyce buried her face in David's shoulder and began to cry hard, the young girl just stood there, the doctor's words swirling around in her head. She tried to understand them; tried to figure out what was about to change; tried to imaging how it would be to live without the possibility to move your own body; to be depending on other persons. All this almost drove Max insane, letting her focus on the last straw of hope she could reach for: Chloe was still alive.


	7. Chapter 6: Straw of Hope

**Author's Notes: Two very heavy chapters ahead. Ye be warned!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Straw of Hope**

 _March 14_ _th_ _2009_

 _I'm a failure._

 _I failed everyone. Me. My parents. Joyce. And now Chloe._

 _I was there. I should've stopped her. But I just stood there, bawling like a fucking baby instead of running after her. Now Chloe has to pay the price for my cowardice. For my stupidity._

 _Maybe Terry was right, I'm nothing more than a fucking crybaby. Maybe everyone who called me names was right about me. Lowlife, a disgrace, pathetic, nuisance, bitch, freak. I'm everything of that and even worse._

 _Where were my fucking Visions when I needed them? Why haven't I foreseen this? Could the universe be so cruel to her? Chloe's gonna be paralyzed from her neck down her entire life and I have to watch it. I have to see my failure my entire life._

 _The only thing that keeps me going for now is the fact that Chloe's still alive. We still can be together and love each other. Sure, it will be different, but our love will stay the same. At least I hope so._

 _Max, the biggest failure of the entire universe, signing off._

* * *

For most people, the constant beeping sound of a heart monitor might be unnerving, but not for Max. Since she was allowed to, the young girl had stayed at Chloe's side the whole time. Seeing her loved one like this, unconscious, her head stabilized and wrapped in bandages, and all those tubes leading from a dozen machines to her body, almost broke her. She'd cried each and every minute until, finally, exhaustion had sent her into a deep slumber. Even in her sleep she'd heard the rhythmic sound of the ECG. Every beep soothed her, because it represented Chloe's heartbeat. And every heartbeat meant that Chloe was alive.

Still, Max felt guilty about what happened; felt guilty that her power to foresee future events had failed her; felt guilty that she hadn't stopped Chloe even though she had a bad feeling about this. These had been the thoughts she slept in with and these were the thoughts she woke up with.

As soon as she regained consciousness and began to realize her surroundings, Max groaned because her head was throbbing like someone was hammering a nail through it. Therefore, she kept her eyes closed and her head rested. Sadly, her brain didn't take a break and began to continue to dig up every possible negative memory. Instantly Max's eyes welled up again and small droplets emerged from the corners of her eyes. The young brunette would've cried once more, if it weren't for this beloved, very much missed, but also very weak voice that let her shoot up with a start.

"Finally awake, sleepyhead?"

Although her head was fixed and she couldn't move it, Chloe was able to look at Max from the corner of her eye and give her a faint smile.

At first it was primarily another shock for Max to see her girlfriend awake, because a wild and strong mixture of feelings – positive and negative – was flooding the young girl's mind. As the first surprise slowly abated it was immediately replaced by relief, making her lips tremble and eventually let her face grimace as she started to cry hard, pressing her head on Chloe's body.

It took Max some time to calm down again, neither of them speaking a word until Chloe broke the silence, her lips forming a wry smile.

"I would've loved to give you some mush, but…damn, they must've pumped me full of drugs or shit, 'cause I can't move a finger. Probably broke me a lotta bones, huh?"

Max shot up once more, staring at the blonde, not knowing what to say. Of course, nobody had told her, yet. And now it was Max's sad duty to tell her most beloved girlfriend that she wouldn't be able to use her body anymore.

"Max?" Chloe spoke softly, her former smile faltering as she saw the sadness in Max's eyes. Knowing her too well, the blonde realized that something was off, right away.

"Chloe…" Max began, her already weak voice trembling. "…they…they didn't…" The next words got stuck in her throat, instead a sob emerged. Aware that Chloe wasn't able to hold her hand to give her some emotional balance; she grabbed it by herself and squeezed it. Only to feel its warmth steadied her enough to continue. "They didn't drug you. It's…" To speak became a fight. Once again, big tears rolled down her face. "Y-you fell on your neck…a-and you broke it…a-and…th-they tried to fix it…but…d-down from your neck…you…you're…"

As much as she tried, the word _paralyzed_ didn't want to leave her tongue. It got stuck and was suppressed by more sobs. But it didn't matter. From here on, Chloe had already figured it out by herself. Her gaze wandered to the ceiling and stayed there, while some salty droplets left her eyes.

"Shit!" she muttered. Her lips now shivered as well, but unlike Max she somehow managed to hold her countenance.

"I'm so sorry," Max suddenly cried out, "It's all my fault! If I hadn't…"

"Stop it right there, Max!" Chloe blurted back, her eyes once more fixed on the brunette, but this time they were burning with anger. "Don't you fucking dare blaming yourself for this! It wasn't your fucking fault, it was mine. It was my decision to slide this fucking rail. Mine! I let my rage take the better of me while you tried to stop me. I…" Her voice broke and Max realized that Chloe wasn't angry about her, but about herself. "I fucked up," she continued quietly, "You went through so much to safe my sorry ass and I…I'm the one who has to apologize. I fucked you over."

"Chloe…"

"You always told me to be careful and I…I…" Once more, Chloe's voice broke as she began to sob. Not knowing what else to do or to say, Max just embraced her girlfriend's body and joined in. Both kept on crying until, after some time, first Chloe and then Max fell asleep again.

* * *

 _March 15_ _th_ _2009_

 _Dear Journal,_

 _Chloe's finally awake and, of course, I lost it as soon as she'd opened her eyes. Ugh, I'm so pathetic! I literally yelled into her face that I feel responsible for what happened and, of course, she got pissed at me and raged back that it was her fault alone. Bottom-line: we both cried our eyes out upon this fucked up situation. The nurse was pretty pissed at me that I had put Chloe under such stress right after surgery, but what did they expect me to do? Nobody else was there to tell her that her old life went straight down the drain. It hurt me so much to see Chloe, a person who loved to jump around and had always been so active, laying there, damned to never move her body ever again! Thinking about this almost makes me despair again, but thanks for the empathy, bitch!_

 _At least Joyce took this entire shit pretty well. I guess she's just glad that Chloe's still alive. Gosh, I can't even imagine how horrible it would've been for her if she'd lost Chloe, too. At least she has David now to give her some hold._

 _I also told Mom and Dad about the accident and Chloe's status. Damn, I never would've expected that it would hit them that hard, too. I never saw Dad that sad and Mom…Geez, she actually cried! Until three months ago she literally despised Chloe and now…_

 _(Big groan) I think Chloe's fate will change everything. Me, her, Joyce, my parents. It will be a whole new life. But I don't care, because one thing will definitely never change: my love for Chloe. I will be at her side Forever and Ever. And nothing will ever change this!_

 _Max Caulfield, ready for some more changes, signing off._

* * *

"Okay, Chlo. You're facing two wild Orcs, both ready to strike with their broad axes, which could easily split your body in half. You just have time for one move, what are you gonna do?" said Max, a game board between her and Chloe. On it was standing several fantasy figurines.

"Dammit!" hissed Chloe silently, overthinking her next move.

"You could still run away." the brunette mentioned with a shrug and a vicious smirk, earning a stinky eye from her girlfriend.

"Callamastia, the Celestial Warrior, never runs away!"

"Alright," Max replied with another shrug, "It's your character's funeral."

"Where's Valkyrie, by the way? She always saved my ass in such fucked situations."

"I already told you that she's on a very important conference for Necromancers."

"Great! Really great! So, this shitty conference is more important to her than her wife's life, huh? If I survive this, I'm gonna have a serious talk with her." Chloe said, putting on a sour expression. If she could, she would've crossed her arms.

"Chill, Chlo, you're not dead…yet."

"You know what? Fuck it, let's fight!" the blonde spoke with determination and a wry smirk, "I'm gonna aim a wide swing with my sword at the closest Orc's head! Siri, roll the dice!"

" _With pleasure. The rolled number is…twenty."_ it chimed from Chloe's phone.

"Fuck yes!" the blonde cheered, giving her chuckling girlfriend a toothy grin.

Max continued to tell the story. "You swing your long sword with success, severing the Orc's head from his body with such force that it smashes right into the face of the second one. The long and sharp spikes of the war helmet bury deep into the Orc's skull, killing him in an instant. Now having defeated your last enemies, you step outside the dungeon into the bright morning sunlight. You're bloodied and weary, just yearning for a hot bath and a well-deserved slumber. After your eyes finally got used to the brightness, you spy a very familiar person in front of you. It's Valkyrie, gazing at you with a chiding glare. _Callamastia,_ she says, _so you went on a quest without me and almost got yourself killed? We both need to have a serious talk, young lady!_ Valkyrie grabs one of Callamastia's ears and drags her home for a well-deserved punishment. The End."

Once more, the wide grinning Max received a stinky eye from Chloe. "Max, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure!"

"Stand up…"

"Okay." Max stood up.

"…go to the mirror…"

"Uhm…" Max walked over to the mirror in the small bathroom.

"…raise your hand like you wanna threat someone and stretch out your middle finger."

The younger girls arm dropped. She turned around and went back into the room, seeing a giggling Chloe.

"Thanks for the flowers, asshole!" she blurted at Chloe, pouting at first. But the longer she hears her girlfriend's snicker and saw her mischievous smile, Max heart warmed up and the corners of her lips moved upwards, too. "It's so good to see you smile again."

Slowly, Chloe's moment of joy abated and was replaced by melancholy. "Y'know, Max, you're my only bright spot right now. You make me happy. Even though…" She paused for a moment, inhaling deeply. "Even though things will never be the same again, I know that there's one thing that will never change: my love for you! You're my center; my hold. As long as you're around, nothing else matters."

Being touched by Chloe's commitment for their love, Max cupped her cheek softly, knowing that it was the only place her loved one was able to still feel her touch. A tear rolled down her face and her lips trembled. "I love you, Chloe! Forever and Ever!"

"I know it sucks and…well, we have to get used to that I order you around, but can you kiss me, please?"

Not wasting another second, Max's head closed in and her lips met Chloe's. At first it was very soft, the young girl fearing to break her girlfriend, but as she felt some eagerness from Chloe's side, the kiss intensified more and more, making both girls moan quietly, until they separated.

Sitting down on a chair beside the bed, Max laid her head right beside Chloe's as close as possible, keeping brushing over her cheeks and her head.

After a while, the blonde sighed again, breaking the calm atmosphere. "Y'know what sucks, too?

"Besides everything else?"

"We'll never be able to…y'know…have sex. I-I mean, I won't be able, but you…"

Max shoots up, her face instantly beet-red as well as Chloe's. Her mouth was opening and closing several times before it was eventually able to form some stuttered words. "Ch-Chloe…I-I…uhm…n-never thought a-about that…"

"I-it's okay, Max. Don't panic. Sorry for bringing it up!"

"No, i-it's alright. I…uh…I was just surprised that you brought it up all of a sudden. And I think it's important to talk about it." Max replied, her eyes fixed on her lap until she heard a scoff.

"There's nothing to talk about, Max. I can't feel shit down there. But you…one day you will feel urges and then…well, I won't be able to take care of it."

"Uhm…th-that's not entirely true." As Chloe looked at the brunette from the corner of her eyes with a quizzically glare, Max bit her bottom lip. "F-from what I learned from your hentai y-you can still use your tongue."

The blonde's jaw dropped. Now she was the one who lacked any words while Max buried her face in her hands to hide her now even more blushing, hot face.

Luckily, this more than awkward moment was ended by a knock on the door. It slowly got opened and Max's parents as well as Joyce and David entered the room.

"Mom! Dad!" Max spoke in joy, jumped up and hugged her parents.

"Hello, little munchkin!" Vanessa said while she was embracing her daughter. But as soon as she looked at her face she frowned. "Why's your face so red? Are you getting sick?"

And again, Max sight dropped and she wished for nothing more than to be invisible. To her own relief, Chloe took over.

"Chill, Vanessa, I just told her a dirty joke. That's all."

Vanessa had already one hand at her hips, ready for some chiding words as Ryan took a step forward to intervene. "Chloe, we're glad that you're feeling well enough already to tell some jokes."

"You know me, Ryan. Always on the bright sight of life. And if it isn't bright, I'm gonna burn up some shit to make some light."

"Chloe!" Max chided after seeing the slight shocked expressions on the faces of their parents.

"How are you doing, sweetheart?" Joyce asked with a soft smile, now stepping closer to the bed to brush over her daughter's forehead.

"Same as yesterday, Mom. Still paralyzed, still glad that you folks are here, still bored when you're not here, still missing to feel my body, still pissed at myself for fucking up big time. Apart from this, I'm fine."

Though Chloe had told them before that she was always looking on the bright side of life, everybody knew that this had been just a lie. Chloe wasn't doing fine and the upcoming melancholically atmosphere underlined it.

Once more, Max felt this deep and depressing sensation of guilt crawling out of the darkest place of her mind. It fed on this negative environment and grew more and more, until the young girl wasn't able to endure it any longer. "I-I'm sorry," she said quietly with a shivering voice and left the room. As soon as the door shut behind her, she sobbed, wet lines forming on her cheeks. Slowly, she headed for the next chair in this hallway and almost collapsed on it. Max covered her face with her hand and cried intensively.

A pair of arms embraced her small body while another hand brushed over her brown hair.

"Still feeling guilty about what happened, kiddo?" Ryan's voice chimed and Max nodded as a reply.

"It's not your fault, Maxine!" her Mom added with a soothing voice, now hugging her daughter, too. "There are things we can't influence. Fate always runs its course and nobody can change it. Not me, not your Dad, and sadly, not even you."

 _But I can and I already did_ , Max almost blurted out, knowing that her powers had finally failed her. Maybe it had just been foolish to rely on them, to take their presence for granted. But it didn't matter anymore. Her mom was right, Max couldn't change what happened and everyone had to live with the given situation. But like always, wounds are going to need time to heal. Sometimes a lot of time.

* * *

 _12_ _th_ _April 2009_

 _Dear Journal,_

 _it's now been almost a month since the accident and, although, I never thought that things will ever be normal again, some sort of normality has actually set._

 _Chloe's getting better with every passing day. She accepts her fate, regains strength, jokes, mocks me. It's almost like my old Chloe's back. I think the therapies and a small glimpse of hope that she will probably be able to move her fingers or even her hand again in future gives her enough strength to don't drown in self-pity and desperation._

 _After she tried to distract herself with work, like she'd done after William's death, Joyce decided to take a time-out from the diner instead, just working when something important comes down. I guess she wants to be there for Chloe and give her some hold, and I think it was the better choice. Chloe needs every bit of hold she can get and we're there for her. Even my parents call her regularly._

 _Well, that leaves only me. How am I doing? *Sigh* Actually, I don't know. I try to get back to normality…you know, attending school, doing some photography…stuff like that, but it's hard. At school I get even more bullied because of my sexuality. They call me Dyke, fag and other rude words that I don't even dare to write down here. Chloe says that they're just jealous and can go suck some dicks, but…I'm not like this. It bothers me! Let alone that she's at the hospital and no one gives a handicapped person shit. Maybe it was a stupid mistake to blurt it out. Maybe we should've kept our relationship an eternal secret._

 _Why do people behave like this anyway? Always picking on someone to feel strong. The only person at school who I can still trust and who's not like the rest is Taylor. Despite all this shit she's still nice to me; supports me; cheers me up. Ugh, just listen to me, I'm such a needy baby! Can't even stand up for myself and keep on drowning in self-pity._

 _Max Caulfield, gonna pity myself a bit more, crying out._

* * *

The bell rung and signed the end of the lesson. Max packed her stuff into her bag and walked out of the classroom, avoiding every other student. She knew that they were all gazing at and talking about her. Hargrove tried to put an end to this, but when half of the school is involved you can't just drown such a wildfire.

Wildfire. That word described pretty good how fast the news about Chloe and Max had spread throughout Arcadia Bay. Not only that these two girls were in love, but also the fact that both were so young was enough to make this a scandal. Nobody in this town made it official or said anything, but Max pretty soon realized that everyone was looking at her, even literally eyeballing the young girl with disgust. But this wasn't something that bothered her, no. What bothered her were their thoughts. Grown-ups were very successful in hiding them, but not their children. At school Max heard what the student's parents were thinking. Some of these thoughts were so mean and evil that they made Max cry in an instant. More than once the teachers had to send her home, because she wasn't able to stop shedding tears.

Max finally reached her locker and realized that there was a sheet of paper pinned on it. With a sigh she took it and read the message.

 _You're not alone!_

Emotionlessly she scrunched up the sheet and dropped it on the floor. It wasn't the first one of such messages and it won't be the last.

' _Spineless hypocrites! Instead of standing by my side they just leave anonym messages. Thanks, but no thanks!'_ she thought bitterly, exchanged some books and closed the locker again.

Suddenly her eyes got covered by a pair of hands, accompanied by a giggle. "Guess who's here!"

"Taylor!" A wide smile appeared on Max's face. She turned around and took the straw-blonde into a tight embrace.

"How're you doing, Max?"

Max broke the hug and both began to walk towards the cafeteria to get some lunch. "Fine…I guess," she answered with a shrug.

"Did you read the link I sent you?"

"Yeah, but…I don't know, it doesn't really help to read about other people's misery. I need someone to stand by my side; to be there for me. People like you! I mean, you're not even into girls and still you send me all this stuff and support me. It's like you're the only one who understands how I feel and what I need!"

"Yeah…" Taylor scoffed plainly, avoiding Max's glimpse, "But you're not alone, Max. There are others…"

"I know," Max interrupted her, "But anonymous messages are no support."

"You can't expect them to out themselves just to make a stand for you," the blonde answered with a sternly glare, "They're afraid, Max. They see what's happening to you and are just scared shitless. I can't even blame them for that. Yet, they leave you messages and try to give you a moral support, and that's better than nothing, don't you think?"

They'd reached the cafeteria and while Max and Taylor were standing in line, waiting to get some food, both stayed silent.

' _Maybe Taylor's right. They indeed try to give me some moral support, but it doesn't make the other's to finally shut up. I still receive the insults and mean comments. It's like I'm fighting a battle against a big homophobic monster all alone and the others are just standing back, giving me a thumbs-up from time to time. But…would I act differently? Would I have the courage to out myself just to help another, maybe even a strange person?'_

Max sat down with a deep sigh. "I guess you're right. At least they try."

"Yeah," Taylor replied, again plainly, like she was in deep thoughts, too. "But I think you're right, too." Both now looked at each other for some time until Taylor broke the gaze and continued with an insecure voice. "There's something you need to know…about me."

A long phase of silence followed in which Taylor gathered all her courage, but sadly it was disturbed as Max's phone chimed. The brunette girl reached inside her bag and pulled out her phone hastily, gazing at the display with concern.

"Sorry Taylor, it's Chloe's mom. I-I need to answer this." she said almost panicky, knowing that Joyce would only call during school time if it's very important.

"Hey Joyce, 'sup?" she spoke into the phone, being more surprised as David Madsen answered her.

[David]: Hi Max, it's me, David.

"David? Wh-what's going on? Where's Joyce?"

[David]: Joyce…can't talk right now. Max, there's been a situation at the hospital. Me and Joyce are heading there right now and will pick you up right away. Please, pack your stuff and wait for us at the front gate.

Her entire body shook and first tears rolled down Max's face. Squeezing the phone in her clenched hand, the young girl's voice was merely a whisper, but she needed to know what was going on, even if she feared the answer.

"Wh-what happened? Is Chloe…is she…"

[David]: Chloe…(he sighed and paused)

[David]: Chloe had a seizure. We…we don't know how bad. We hope to get more information at the hospital.

Max didn't reply anything, her voice just failed. She had to fight down the need to collapse at the spot.

"Oh my god, Max, what happened? Is it Chloe? Max?" Taylor said with concern. She even jumped up and held her friend by the shoulders as she saw the emotional pain and shock in the brunette girl's face.

But Max didn't respond. She just grabbed her bag and ran for the exit. As she'd reached the front gate, David and Joyce were already waiting for her. The young girl entered David's car and all three of them drove to the hospital.

* * *

They were waiting for over one hour now. So far, nobody had been able to give Joyce, David and Max some news about Chloe's condition.

The whole time Max was merely in shock, unable to imagine what was about to happen next. The fear of losing the person that meant everything to her was almost unbearable, even crushing. Memories about the day of the accident found their way back into her mind. Everything was like a horrible Deja-vu, even as finally a doctor entered.

Everyone jumped up, unable to wait any longer for some information.

"H-how is she, doctor?" Joyce asked, a wet tissue still in her hand.

"Mrs. Price, I'm chief doctor Anderson and I'd like to talk to you about your daughter's condition privately in my office, please." the man in white said, signing Joyce to follow him.

The blonde woman nodded and, surprisingly, took a hold of Max's hand to take her with.

"Mrs. Price, I don't think…" the doctor began as he realized what Joyce wanted to do, but was interrupted by her immediately.

"She's my daughter's best friend and like a part of my family. Whatever you have to tell me, you have to tell her, too." Receiving a slight nod, Joyce squeezed Max's hand softly. "C'mon, sweetie."

The chief doctor's office wasn't very spacy, but it was enough for three persons to sit down. Doctor Anderson sat down at the desk, Joyce and Max at the opposite side. For a moment there was a heavy, almost painful silence, which the doctor broke as he began to talk.

"Mrs. Price, we were able to stabilize your daughter again, but…" He paused for a moment, choosing his next words. "Let me say that such attacks can be quite common after such injuries. Sadly, as we ran some tests we discovered something that had slipped our attention so far."

Now was the moment of truth. Joyce's hand clenched around Max's smaller one, almost crushing it. Under normal circumstances Max would've cried out, but right now she felt way to numb and was just following the doctor's words, returning the tight squeeze.

"There's no easy way to tell you this, so I'm going to say it right away: your daughter's organs are failing. It's a very slow process, that's why we didn't notice it before. I'm very, very sorry, but there's nothing we can do about it. Even if we had discovered it right away…"

Doctor Anderson's voice faded as Max entirely shut down. What she'd just heard was simply too much for her to bear. She wasn't even able to cry. Chloe was dying. There was nothing they could do about it; nothing SHE could do about it. Her fate was settled. Max's Visions had entirely failed. Everything she'd done to keep her alive had been in vain. It was over. The young girl hadn't even realized that Joyce was hugging her, crying out every bit of pain in her tiny shoulder.

"H-how much time has she left?" Max suddenly spoke out, even though she never planned to do it. She was simply acting on autopilot right now.

Once more, the doctor sighed before he answered. "One, maybe two months tops. If we put her in an artificial coma maybe longer."

"Thank you." she replied emotionlessly, stood up and left the office. Both, Joyce and the doctor followed her with their gazes. As Max reached the door to Chloe's room, she stopped. She knew that Chloe wasn't in any condition to have any visitors. Therefor she simply touched the door that was physically separating them and this was the moment everything broke down on her. She sobbed. Once, twice. A flood of tears dripped onto the floor. Her legs weren't able to hold her anymore and she fell on her knees.

Her last straw of hope, all her dreams, literally her entire life had been destroyed. Chloe was dying and Max was sure that she was about to die with her.


	8. Chapter 7: Lake of Tears

**Author's Notes: Hope you guys don't hate me for what I'm gonna let you go through.**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Lake of Tears**

"She's awake now." spoke a nurse, who had just left Chloe's room, to the three mourning persons in front of it. Max didn't know how much time had went by since her breakdown, but she knew that she didn't want anything else than to visit her beloved Chloe.

Immediately she jumped up and wanted to go inside as she was suddenly stopped by Joyce. "Max," the blonde woman spoke, her entire expression still radiating grief and despair, "Please don't tell her."

Although the young girl hadn't planned on doing such a thing, she gave a blankly glare. "Why not? She deserves to know!" the young girl blurted out, her voice quiet and weak.

"Max, the doctor warned us to don't put Chloe under any stress. I agree with you that she has the right to know it, but not right now, okay?"

Without giving her an answer, Max freed herself from Joyce's grasp and entered Chloe's room. The strawberry-blonde girl slowly turned her head as far as possible, to give her girlfriend a weak, but warm smile.

"Hey, Maximus," she said, sounding weak and hoarse, "Sorry for scaring the shit outta ya!"

For a moment, Max just stood there, not moving a limb, not saying a word. Hearing Chloe's voice flooded her body with so much joy, but it was replaced by sadness and grief, right away. Once more, the young girl realized that it was only a matter of time until she would never hear this voice ever again. Luckily, dullness took over and she just walked over to Chloe's bed.

Knowing her girlfriend way too good, Chloe figured out that something was wrong pretty fast. "Hey c'mon, they told me that such shit's quite common after such an accident. I'm fine, ready for some action!"

Seeing the encouraging smile in her beautiful face, something broke down inside of Max. She wasn't able to hold up this façade anymore. Her face grimaced and tears emerged from her blue eyes as she started to brush Chloe's face.

Now it was more than obvious for the paralyzed girl that something was definitely wrong. With a big sigh her smiling faltered and she looked away. "Okay, Max, what's going on?"

She wanted to tell her; wanted to get it off her chest; wanted to give her strength and courage; wanted to tell her that she would be at her side until the end, but all Max managed to say was a sobbed "Oh Chloe…"

"That bad, huh?" was the only thing Chloe replied, her gaze still fixed on the ceiling. A single tear rolled down her cheek while Max kept on sobbing and sniffing the whole time. "How long?"

It cost her lot of strength to speak and not to scream out, but eventually Max managed to form at least three words, whispering them. "Two months…tops."

"Max," Chloe finally spoke after some moments, shifting her gaze towards Max and looked into her sad eyes deeply. "I wanna be alone for a minute. Please."

If Max knew anything then that if Chloe needed some space you should give it to her, even in such messed-up situations. The younger girl mustered a faint nod, reluctantly withdrew her hand from her girlfriends head, stood up on shaky legs and left the room. Before the door closed she could hear Chloe's heavy sobs, causing another big sting in her tiny heart. Once more she had been the bringer of devastating news and once again she felt guilty.

Max had reached a point where everything was too much for her. The pressure on her slender shoulders became too much and let her fall to the ground where she curled up into a fetal position, crying and screaming out every bit of emotional agony.

* * *

Unable to calm down Max, Joyce and David had no other option than to call a doctor. Luckily, Dr. Mortensen had shift at the hospital and took care of the poor girl. She was now resting in a separate room close to Chloe's.

The sudden buzz of her phone ripped Joyce out of her deep thoughts and almost made her jump. She pulled it out of her pocket and glanced at the display.

[Chloe]: _Need to talk with you._

Surprised at first, Joyce stared at the phone, remembering that Max had told her that Chloe was able to write text messages by dictating them to her phone. She showed David the message, who gave her an encouraging hug.

"Go in there. She needs you." he told her.

Slowly, Joyce made her way to Chloe's room and entered it. Every time she saw her daughter, lying there, not moving, melancholy took over.

"Hello, sweetheart!" she managed to say with a forced smile, making her daughter to look at her with red-cried eyes.

"Where's Max?"

"She…uhm…she didn't feel well and had to lay down a bit." Joyce replied, trying not to worry her daughter too much, who, however, just scoffed cynically.

"Yeah, I figured that. Hope she's okay."

"I hope so, too."

"Mom," Chloe now spoke with determination, shifting her gaze to the ceiling again, "I wanna go home."

"Chloe, I don't think…"

Giving her Mom the sternest expression ever, Chloe interrupted her. "It's my final decision. See it as my last wish. I don't wanna die in a fucking hospital." Then her expression saddened and her eyes welled up once more. Her voice was weak and brittle. "I wanna spend the rest of my time with you guys. With the people I love. Not with some stupid, patronizing asshats who always want to stick a needle in my bum or tell me when I can see my family. I wanna go home, Mom! I…I just wanna…I just wanna go home."

Immediately Joyce walked over to her crying daughter, placed a long, soothing kiss on her forehead and took a hold on her limp hand. "I promise you, sweetie-pie, I'm gonna get you home. I'll speak with a doctor right away."

"Thank you!" said Chloe quietly between her sniffs, "I love you, Mom!"

Not able to stay strong upon these words, big tears drew wet lines over Joyce's face. "I love you, too, sweetie! We all love you!"

* * *

 _April 22_ _nd_ _2009_

 _Dear Journal,_

 _Chloe's finally coming home! After a week of building and preparing her new room she's finally ready to come home!_

 _It had taken us a lot of work to rebuild William's old workshop. Let alone that it almost cost a small fortune. Building material, furniture, all the required medical equipment (including a big bed where we both can sleep side by side). Luckily, Joyce's insurance paid most of the medical stuff, but the rest she had to buy on her own. Thank dog that my parents could help out a bit with some money. Additionally, Joyce sold the diner, though I and Chloe were against it. But when I asked her why, she just told me that after Chloe's gone, she would move away with David, leaving her past behind and start anew. I can't blame her, I really can't, because I'm gonna do the same. When the time comes I'll either move in with my parents again or…I don't know…maybe I'll join my Chloe. It sounds kinda romantic to be united in death, forever and ever! But the problem is, Chloe made me swear to move on. To keep on living. Easy to say for someone who has no other choice._

 _Ugh, listen to me, Chloe's not even gone and I already get morbid and all depressed and shit. It would just be crappy if I'd always dampen the mood the whole time while Chloe needs some hold and cheer-up. And, actually, I'm not alone. There are some people who give me some hold, too. Like Taylor and Victoria. Granted, Victoria is just an Internet friend, but she really cares and Taylor…gosh, she's so sweet! She's always there for me, soothes me when I'm so fucked-up that I can't even face Chloe. Like a real friend, not exactly like Chloe, but close._

 _Nevertheless, I'm afraid of the upcoming weeks. I'm so scared to wake up one morning and Chloe…doesn't. When will be the right time to say farewell? Will there be time for one last kiss? For one last_ I love you _? I feel so desperate. So empty. Nothing matters anymore. I even begged my parents to take me off school, because what's the matter if all I'll do there is to wait for the inevitable call that my Chloe slept in and I wasn't even there to spend her last hours with her. I…_

 _I can't write about this shit anymore! I'm done!_

* * *

The ambulance stopped right in front of 44 Cedar Avenue. Joyce, David, Max and her parents saw how two paramedics and a doctor embarked the vehicle, opened the back doors and pulled out a stretcher with Chloe on it.

"Careful, dude! Fragile load!" she blurted at the two medics as they hit a bump, making everyone on the lawn giggle. "Heya, guys!" she greeted everyone, "Hope you blended me some eggs 'n' bacon, 'cause I'm so tired of this shitty hospital food!"

With another snicker, Max walked beside Chloe as she was brought inside, giving her a peck on the cheek. "You're so impossible, Chlo! You finally come home and the first thing you want is your mom's food."

"Hey, it's just an appreciation of her cooking."

"And I appreciate you praise and healthy appetite, sweetheart." Joyce spoke with a warm smile. "And, yes, I prepared you some eggs and bacon."

"Whoohoo! Fuck you, oh slimy, disgusting hospital food, 'cause I'm back…" Chloe's speech stopped abruptly as she was rolled into her new room and was able to look around, "…home." Her jaw opened and closed several times. Only quietly whispers left her mouth as she was naming everything she saw. "Big ass bed. Big ass Plasma TV. Big ass PC. Big ass window. H-how…?"

"For you, only the best!" said Max softly with a warm smile before she planted a long kiss on her girlfriend's lips.

The paramedics hauled Chloe into her new bed and the doctor did one last check-up. "A nurse will come by every day to check on you and do the basic necessities."

"Basic necessities?" Max asked quizzically and received a smirk from Chloe, who was more than willing to answer her question.

"You know, wiping my ass, change my piss bag, washing me. Though I'd love that would do the last one."

"Chloe!"

While everyone just stared at a chuckling Chloe and a beet-red blushing Max, the doctor just arched one eyebrow and continued to speak after clearing his throat. "Everything seems to be fine for now. I'll come by next week for another check-up. If there should be anything wrong you have my number. Have a nice day!"

After the doctor had left, Chloe exhaled and rolled with her eyes. "Geez, finally this smartass is gone. During the whole ride it was: _I think it's a mistake_ and _They shouldn't have allowed this_. Blah, blah, blah. So, how about some munch?"

* * *

Though the room wasn't that big, everyone brought a chair and they all ate in Chloe's new room. For the first time since the accident there was an atmosphere of joy and happiness. Telling jokes, talking about shenanigans of the past years, just a bit of normality for one moment after all this tragedy. For Max, this had been the best evening. Laughing, joking, just being a 13-year-old girl. She hadn't done anything of this since the accident.

Now dressed in her pajama, Max entered Chloe's new room and laid down right beside her girlfriend, cuddling herself very close to her warm body.

"It felt so good to see you actually happy again." Chloe spoke quietly while Max was brushing through her strawberry-blonde hair.

"It actually has been an amazing evening," was Max's reply, "And it felt definitely good to leave all this depressing shit behind for once."

"Wanna make this night even more amazing?" the blonde suddenly asked and both looked at each other deeply.

"What do you have in mind?"

Chloe inhaled and exhaled deeply. Her face blushed and Max could feel the nervousness she was radiating. "I-I know we're…y'know…kinda young, but…I wanna ask you something." She paused for another moment to muster some more courage. "If I'd ask you to…merry me, what would be your answer?"

Shyly glancing at Max from the corner of her eyes, Chloe could see that her girlfriend was lacking any words out of surprise, letting her just hoped that it wouldn't end in a panic-attack.

But the younger girl stayed calm and laid her head on Chloe's shoulder. "Yes!" she whispered, followed by a sniff, "Without any second guesses."

"There should be something in my left hand. Can you please get it for me?"

Max reached down along Chloe's body, wishing that her girlfriend could feel her soft touches. As she'd reached the blonde's hand, the brunette girl felt a squared object. She pulled it out from under the cover and glanced at it in the light of the small lamp on the nightstand.

"Open it!"

Slowly, Max opened the small Box, which contained an old, golden ring. "Chloe…" the small girl gasped, once more speechless.

"It's my Mom's old engagement ring. A family heirloom. I talked with her about it while you took a shower. She's fine with it."

"Oh Chloe!" Max said with a trembling voice, embracing Chloe's body tightly as she began to cry, "I love you so much!"

"I love you, too! Forever and Ever!" the blonde spoke silently, now shedding some tears herself. A small smile appeared on her lips, because she knew that this moment was special. Max was crying again, but this time out of joy.

* * *

 _April 24_ _th_ _2009_

 _Dear Journal,_

 _you'll never guess what happened last night. Chloe proposed to me and…OMG, we're kinda engaged! I feel so happy right now, though I know that this runs on a fucking expiring date._

 _Maybe instead of bawling and feeling pity for myself the entire time, I should make the best out of it! Chloe needs me and I'll be there. So, I promise, from now on I'll use all my power to make her last days the best of her life!_

 _Max Caulfield, ready to stay strong and blow up some shit, signing off_

* * *

Soft and slowly Max's fingertips brushed over the silky skin of Chloe's arm. Their eyes were closed and, besides their breathing, everything was quiet.

"Are you feeling this?" Max whispered, her warm breath caressing Chloe's cheek.

"Mh-mh." the blonde negated, highly focused on her loved one's touches.

Max's hand went further until it reached Chloe's hand. "And this?"

Some minutes passed. Max knew that there was no use in rushing things, so she waited patiently for her fiancé's answer, enjoying fondling her hand.

"No, nothing." Chloe eventually responded, a bit of disappointment chiming with her voice.

Moving a bit further to Chloe's fingertips, a wry smile was forming on Max's lips. "And how about here?"

In an instant, Chloe's expression changed from serious and concentrated to relaxed and relieved. "Yeah, I feel it!" Now she opened her eyes and both girls smiled warmly at each other.

"Now close your eyes again and tell me if you can feel any details. And no cheating!"

With a scoffed "Killjoy!" Chloe obliged, closed her eyes once more and focused.

"Now describe me what you feel, dork!"

For Chloe the world was dark and absolutely silent. Every bit of concentration was now fixed on her fingertips. The first time it had been just some tickle she felt, but over the weeks it became more and more detailed. It was like a little miracle and had given the two girls more than just some hope. It was like a sign for them that maybe everything could still turn out fine.

"Okay," the blonde began, licking her lips one more time, "I can feel your fingernail. Now you're moving my fingers over your hand, I can feel the bumps. Now it's getting softer…I guess your arm. Yep, your arm, I felt your elbow…Okay, now that feels weird…uhm…fabric! It's the fabric of your shirt! Wow, this is awesome, I…wait, we're not done, yet? Well, okay…uhm…now it's soft again…way softer and…Where are you leading me to, Maxi? It feels strange…kinda squashy and…"

Chloe's eyes shot open as she realized where Max had leaded her hand. As her sight fixed on her fiancé, she saw that the brunette was sitting upright beside her and that her hand was resting under Max's shirt, right on her breast. "Wh-what are you doing?"

"I-I wanna give you another good memory," Max spoke, the tone of her voice and her averting gaze as well as her expression of discomfort clearly indicating that she felt uncomfortable.

"Max, stop it!" Chloe replied, the entire good mood gone and replaced by anger.

"B-but I thought…"

Although she looked at her with agitation radiating eyes, Chloe's voice stayed calm. The older girl just knew that raging wouldn't do any good here, besides that Max meant it well and Chloe had dreamt for a long time to feel such details of her girlfriend's body. "Max, just ask yourself: Do you really want this? Are you really ready for this?"

"I-I…I don't…"

"No, you're not. You feel uncomfortable. You're not ready for this and its fine! I don't wanna remember you, forcing yourself to do something like this just to please my wet dreams. That's…that's not how it works!"

"B-but…"

"Please, Maxi," she continued to speak, now giving Max a warm smile, "I made my peace with it. The only thing I need to remember is this sweet smile on your sweet freckled face. This face I learned to love so much."

Max took Chloe's hand away from under her shirt placed it on her already by small droplets of tears wetted cheek. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Maxi. You tried and I appreciate the offer. So, we're good?" Receiving a nod by her fiancé, Chloe bobbed her head in satisfaction, too. "Now c'mon, you giant goop, heads up and gimme a big kiss!"

* * *

It was late at night. Just a few minutes ago Max and Chloe had finished watching _Bladerunner_ for the hundredth time and were now lying side by side.

Max's head rested on Chloe's shoulder while she'd cuddled herself pretty close to her girlfriend, fondling her hand.

"Chloe?" Max spoke out silently, not knowing if the blonde was still awake. She knew that Chloe needed the sleep. Over the last few weeks Chloe becoming weaker and weaker, accompanied by heavy headaches. So bad, that the doctors even had to prescribe her a higher dosage of Morphine.

"Hmm?" she hummed drowsily, signing that she was not entirely asleep.

"Y'know, I really would've loved to merry you."

"I know. I would've loved that, too."

"Then let's do it!" Max suddenly spoke out as a crazy idea popped up in her mind.

"What?!" Chloe half chuckled in unbelief, but instead of a simple answer, Max grabbed her hand tightly and began a speech.

"Chloe Elizabeth Price, do you wanna take this beside you lying cute girl as your wife? Will you love, mock and haunt her as a ghost until destiny reunites the both of us again?"

"Yeah," Chloe replied without hesitation, love and warmth chiming with her voice, "Yeah, I do!" Then it was her turn. "And will you, Maxine Caulfield, take this hot, handicapped, wild chick beside you as your wife. Will you love her and keep on turning her into a big pile of mush, even if she's haunting you annoyingly as a ghost, until destiny reunites the both of us?"

"Yes, I do!" answered Max, now lifting her head to look at Chloe with a warm smile and welled up eyes. "By the powers I just gave myself, I hereby announce us to wife and…well, wife."

"You may now kiss the bride!" added Chloe with a whisper and got a big and long kiss as a reply.

* * *

 _May 21_ _st_ _2009_

 _Chloe's getting worse. She's in constant pain, because the Morphine doesn't work anymore. It hurts me to see her like this. To witness how she's falling apart._

 _Yesterday, the doctor said that she has reached a critical condition and recommended to transfer back to the hospital, but Chloe told him to suck a dick._

 _I think it's now merely a matter of time and therefor this will be my last entry. I can't write about this anymore. I simply don't have the strength. And as soon as Chloe's gone, I'll leave everything behind. My decision's final!_

 _Good bye, my loyal Journal, it was a good time with you. But sadly, I can't take you with me._

 _Max Caulfield, burning all bridges, says farewell!_

 _P.S.: I just remembered the text of a song I once heard when I rummaged through Mom's old CDs. I never understood these melancholic lyrics before, but now I do and I think they make a good last entry._

' _Is there someone who can lead me_

 _Out of this fate and to the light_

 _Is there someone who can guide me_

 _Through the lake of tears I cried'_

* * *

The light of the early morning sun shone through the big window, illuminating Chloe's room. Slowly, Max opened her eyes, the blinding light forcing her to close them several times until they got used to it. Like every morning, the young girl's first gaze fell on her next to her lying Chloe.

She looked pale and her forehead was sweaty. Max could see how her loved one's face slightly grimaced in pain and then softened again. As if she had an instinct for it, Chloe opened her blue eyes to answer her self-announced wife's glare.

"Morning, my love! Had a good night's sleep?" asked Max, fondling through Chloe's strawberry-blonde hair. The blue streak she once wore partly washed out.

"Ugh, don't ask," Chloe answered with a weak voice, coughing right after. "Hey babe, c-can you fetch me some water, please?"

"Sure!" Max got up and took the cup with water. "Drink up, buttercup!"

Chloe took some deep sips through the straw until the cup was empty and she sighed in relief. "Aah, thanks, Maxi! So, how do I look?"

"Like shit," the younger girl said with wry smirk, knowing that Chloe wouldn't mind that she used this expression. As a confirmation, she received a weak smile, followed by a scoff.

"Look who's talking," the blonde replied, "Damn, Maxi, when was the last time you took a shower?"

"I dunno. Five days ago?"

"That'd explain the fishy stench."

"You're such an ass!" Max retorted at her jokingly, softly slapping Chloe's shoulder. The blonde, however, just kept on snickering until she had to cough once more. "But I think you're right. I definitely need a shower. Mind if I let you alone for some minutes?"

Rolling with her eyes, Chloe once more scoffed faintly. "Gosh, Maxi, I think I'll survive a few minutes without you. Now hush, get a hot shower!"

"Be back in a jiff!"

Right after planting a peck on Chloe's cheek, Max left the room to take that needed shower.

"Good Morning, sweetheart," chimed Joyce's voice from the dining table as she was setting it for two persons.

"Morning, Joyce!"

Before Max was able to make her way to the stairs, Chloe's mom blocked the way, grabbed her shoulder softly and looked at the young girl with worry. "Good Lord, Max, you look awful!"

"I'm…I'm fine. I…I wanna take a shower and…and after the breakfast I'll be better." she answered with a forced smile, but her eye bags, the scruffy attire and her already welling up eyes scolded it a lie right away.

"Max," Joyce said, brushing over Max's freckled cheek, "We're worried about you. I know you want to be strong for Chloe and I'm so thankful that you're doing this, but…" She exhaled deeply, now fighting with her own emotions. "Don't suppress your grief, Max. You need to let it out or…"

"When Chloe's…when she's gone there will be enough time mourn. But not right now. Joyce," now the brunette girl gazed at Joyce with determination, "I'm fine, okay?"

With a faint nod and one last soft squeeze on her shoulder, Joyce released Max and let her continue her way to the bathroom. There, the young girl stripped off her clothes and entered the shower, letting the hot water rinse over her body.

She started to hate to shower some time ago. Because here she was alone with her negative thoughts and summed up emotions, which were now released with a flood of tears and loud sobs as her strength to keep them down faded away. Mostly, these outbursts came as fast as they were gone again and Max eventually was able to wash her body and hair with some soap, her hands trembling the whole time.

Though taking care of herself merely became kind of an unimportant necessity, Max actually felt a bit better after being all freshened up. She even was able to give her reflection in the mirror some attention before she headed downstairs again.

"Now that's a fine lookin' young lady," Joyce mentioned as Max passed the kitchen, "Breakfast will be ready in a minute."

"Thanks, Joyce!" Max replied, now even able to give Chloe's mom a warm and honest smile. She was ready to take care of her beloved Chloe once more, the emotional pressure washed away. Already coming up with a plan in her mind how she'd spend this beautiful day with her loved one, Max entered the room, instantly trying to radiate her good mood.

"Wakey, wakey, Chlo! Eggs 'n' bake are almost ready!" she said as the young girl realized that Chloe had fallen asleep again. Max couldn't blame her. Everything had become so exhausting and the nights had been everything else than relaxing. Therefor she tried to wake her softly by trying to plant another kiss on her mouth. Their lips hadn't even touched as Max realized that something was wrong.

Normally, she should've felt Chloe's warm breath brushing softly over her skin, but there was nothing. She now laid her hand on the blonde's chest, hoping to feel it heave a bit, but there was nothing. Although she already knew it better she put a last glimpse of hope in laying her head on Chloe's chest, too, trying to find a heartbeat, but it was a lost cause. Max would never hear that soothing heartbeat ever again.

A constant stream of tears was flowing down her face, soaking the fabric of Chloe's shirt as Max let her head rest for some more time. The emotional pain and grief was so high that she wasn't even able to sob. She barely was able to lift her head and give Chloe one last kiss.

"I'll always love you," she whispered with a trembling voice, "We'll see us soon again."

The door opened and Joyce entered the room with a tray filled with food. "And here comes a healthy breakfast for my two favorite gi…" She stopped immediately and dropped the tray as she saw the wetted cheeks, the red-cried eyes and the trembling lips on Max's face, paired with the fact that Chloe's eyes were closed. The blonde woman fell on her knees, buried her face in her hands and started to cry hard.

Both had known that this moment would come one day, but no matter how much you try to prepare for such a devastating moment, it would always come surprisingly without a warning and always be crushing.

* * *

A warm breeze blew over the cliffs, drying the wet lines on her freckled cheeks and tugging on her black dress. Max was standing at the edge of the cliff, the lighthouse rising high right beside the mourning girl. Her right hand was clenching around a necklace with three bullets and a golden ring attached to it. She was staring at the horizon, watching the sun go down while she was waiting for something. Maybe for a sign or maybe for just one last push.

"I'm coming!" she whispered, closed her eyes and mustered all courage for one last step.

"It's really nice up here, isn't it?" a female voice suddenly chimed right beside her. Startled and surprised, Max opened her eyes and shifted her gaze to the girl that was standing close to her.

She had a very beautiful face and long blond hair that was falling loose onto her shoulders. Her fancy clothes and a blue feather-earring perfected her attire. Somehow Max knew this face, but she couldn't recall where she'd seen it before. Actually, it didn't matter to her anymore.

"I just love this place. It's so calming. Do you come here often?" the blonde kept on speaking, but Max just ignored her question, turning away again.

"Just leave me alone!" she answered instead, once more closing her eyes and readying herself for the jump as a new wave of grief flooded her body and let her shed tears again.

"Okay, what's it gonna be?" the other girl suddenly spoke in a stern tone, "Are you stepping away from that edge on your own or should I drag you?"

As Max looked with wide open eyes at the blonde she saw that she was dead serious about it and it made Max furious. "Why do you even care?" she yelled at her, "It's my decision, not yours! Now fuck off and leave me the fuck alone!"

"I care, because I won't allow that such a cute girl like you just ends her life while I stand by and keep on asking myself, why." the beautiful girl blurted back, now getting calm again in an instant, "Let's make a deal, okay? Let us just sit down and talk a bit. If you convince me that death is the only solution for you, then I'll leave and you can go ahead. And if I convince you to stay alive, then you can thank me later for stopping you from making a huge mistake. Deal?"

A long moment of silence occurred. Once more, Max's gaze was fixed on the far horizon as she thought about the blonde's offer. "Well played, Chlo!" she muttered to herself, turned around and sat down on the nearby bench, signing the other girl, who took a seat right beside Max, that she agreed to her proposal.

"Thanks, uhm…?"

"Max." the brunette completed her plainly, gaze fixed on her lap.

"Oh, that's a cool name! Hi Max, I'm Rachel. Pleased to meet ya!"

As Rachel reached her hand to Max, the brunette just gave a short glimpse, followed by a shrug. Realizing that she wouldn't receive a handshake, the blonde withdrew her hand and tried some Smalltalk.

"So…uhm…guessing from your attire I'd say that you lost someone very important recently. Maybe your Mom or Dad or sister or…" Rachel stopped as Max shook her head, letting her know that she was on the wrong way. Then she realized the necklace and the golden ring on it. The blonde had always been good at combining things, a useful trait she got from her father, so it wasn't hard for her to add the missing pieces. "…someone you loved."

As Max's head sunk deeper she knew that this was the right answer and she also knew that she had to be careful now. "Mind if you tell me about your loved one?"

Another moment if silence occurred, only broken by the crushing waves and the wind, which carried away Max's weakly whispered word. "Chloe."

"Chloe, was that her name?"

Max simply nodded, and as every memory of Chloe was flooding her mind like a tsunami-wave, she began to tell Rachel every bit about her. How they met. Their crazy childhood together. How they drove their parents sometimes insane with their shenanigans. How Chloe's dad had died in a car crash and Max had done everything to stay at her side. How they fell in love. Except the details about her Visions Max told her everything. Whenever she talked about a funny memory she smiled; whenever it was a sad one she cried. She actually relived her entire time with Chloe in this very moment, and it kind if soothed her; told her that their time together was not limited by those last three sad months.

Normally, Rachel was an amazing and talented actress. Another useful trait she got from her father. She could easily control her emotions, depending on the situation, but this time it was different. This time she wasn't able to keep up the act. She rode the same waves of emotions as Max. It was like the brunette had taken her by the hand and leaded her through an exhibition that showed her life with Chloe. Rachel wasn't even aware that she'd actually grabbed Max's hand tightly. As Max had finished her story both girls sat side by side, once more gazing at the beginning sundown.

"I'm so sorry, Max!" Rachel said, giving Max's hand a soft squeeze, "Chloe really was an amazing person and I understand now why you're hurting so much, but…"

"She was the best. Always so full of energy and love. A…"

"Force of nature."

Astonished that Rachel had literally taken the words out of her mouth, Max looked at her with eyes wide open, receiving a wry smile from the blonde.

"My mom tends to call me that when I'm getting kinda eccentric," she continued, now gazing deeply into Max's blue eyes, "Listen, Max, I know you miss Chloe like crazy and your heart hurts, but…but wounds will heal, and life – as cheesy and stupid as it sounds – moves on. There are people out there who care about you! Your parents, Joyce, this Taylor-girl, me. You're not alone Max. You have friends and maybe one day…you'll even find another nice girl that treats you like you deserve it."

"I-I don't know…"

"Hey, do you believe in stars?"

"What?!" scoffed Max, not sure how to understand Rachel's question.

"The stars," the blonde repeated, shifting her sight to the sky above them, "I believe that they're more than just some big balls of burning plasma, planets or galaxies. I think that they're guiding us; tell us who we are; show us our destiny. Maybe the day Chloe left us, a new star was born and will now guide others on their way, like the other stars once guided the old seafarers safely back home…yeah, I'd like to imagine this."

"I'd like to imagine it, too, yet…" replied Max, now gazing at the sky with a weak smile, which faltered a moment later, "It's unrealistic."

"Don't say that! The universe is full of secrets and mysteries, it's…" Suddenly Rachel's voice distorted and changed into a very familiar one, "…a treacherous bitch who likes to fuck you over whenever a chance comes up."

Taken aback, Max's head turned rapidly and as she saw Future-Max instead of Rachel sitting right beside her, she lost it and jumped up, hissing her next words. "What. The fuck. Are you doing here? What do you still want from me?"

"Just guess, Max." the other Max replied dryly with a shrug of her shoulders, her gaze still fixed on the early evening sky.

"She's dead, okay. You got what you wanted. Now fuck off and leave me alone!" the 13-year-old girl now yelled at her older version, tears of anger and sadness emerging from her eyes once more.

"Dead?" Future-Max scoffed, showing an expression of slight amusement as she looked at her younger self, "Oh c'mon, it's just another Vision and…wait," In merely a second her mocking behavior vanished and was replaced by a sternly frown, "You think this is your reality? Shit!"

Their surroundings flickered and the sounds of nature were replaced by a constant chanting.

" _Price! Price! Price!"_

Now Future-Max got quickly onto her feet and grabbed Max tightly by her shoulders as if she feared that she might slip away. "Okay Max, listen! It's getting worse, you…"

"I won't give her up!" young Max spoke with determination.

"Max…"

"Never ever!"

Future-Max exhaled deeply, realizing that Max would never let Chloe go. But on the other hand, would she do it? Probably not. It was time for her to cut the hypocrisy and show the universe the middle finger. "Safe her!" she spoke with a wry smile, giving her younger self a reassuring squeeze on her shoulders. "Show the universe that it can eat shit!"

Then she was gone and Max was surrounded by darkness, following the chanting back to her reality.

* * *

"Price! Price! Price!"

Her vision was all blurry and her head hurt like crazy. It took Max some time to orient, but as soon as she noticed that Chloe was about to do the slide she ignored everything, even the heavy dizziness, and sprinted towards her girlfriend.

"Chloe, don't!" Max screamed out. She hadn't even done her first step as the nauseating dizziness and the painful headaches let her trip, stumble and eventually fall into the pool with a shriek. Her body kept on rolling down until she'd reached the bottom. Still entirely disorientated, Max lied there for a while, squirming upon the intense pain that was now running through her entire body.

"Chloe!" she spoke quietly, desperately trying to get up in order to safe her girlfriend from this terrible fate.

"Max!" the so beloved voice of Chloe chimed and soon her beautiful face filled her sight, looking at the young girl with worry. "Max, talk to me! Are you okay? Max!"

Seeing her beloved Chloe after such a traumatically experience again, Max's lips trembled and her eyes welled up. "Chloe!" she spoke with a low and weak voice, instantly wrapping her arms around the blonde's neck, pressing her as close as possible as she cried out her entire agony she had to live through during her Vision.

Right away, as she had gazed into her girlfriend's doe eyes and saw the pain and relief in them as well as the stream of blood that was flowing out of her nose, Chloe realized that Max had another Vision. Without a second thought the strawberry-blonde girl knew that her life had been saved again. She returned the hug and gave her crying Max soothing brushes over her head. "I'm here, Maxi. I'm alive! Sssh!" she whispered into her ears, almost sobbing herself, "C'mon, let's get you home!"

Slowly, Chloe lifted Max to her feet, holding the still weeping girl steady while they left the pool step by step. The skater posse had already gathered around the so-called _Pit of doom_. Trevor and Justin gave the two girls a hand as they finally reached the edge as suddenly an evil chuckling chimed.

"That was really awesome," Terry Graves said, clapping with his hands. His devilish expression of amusement faltered as he gazed at Chloe intensively. "But it doesn't mean that you can just walk away, Price. You owe me a bet or your board!"

"Fuck off, asshole!" she plainly answered, trying to walk past.

To everyone's surprise, Terry gave Max such a hard push that Chloe wasn't able to hold her anymore. Still unsteady on her feet, the young brunette stumbled backwards, fell over a bench and hit the concrete with her head first. In shock Chloe gazed at her on the ground lying and not moving girlfriend, whispering a trembled: "Max!"

"Well, at least she stopped bawling and you can focus on our deal!" the black-haired boy spoke dryly with a shrug, earning comments and glances of hate and anger by everyone around, except Chloe.

Her hands were clenched, shacking fists. Her teeth were gritted and big droplets hit to concrete under her feet. Chloe felt deep anger and hate, ready to break out like a volcano and this time there was no reason to hold back. Terry hurt Max and made fun of it. He needed a lesson and everyone around would agree. Trevor was already kneeling beside Max, checking on her, so Chloe didn't need to worry about this for now.

"You want my fucking board?" she hissed, her rage now reaching a critical mass.

"If you wanna chicken out on our bet, yes."

Chloe rapidly turned around, picked up her skateboard and smashed it with full force right into Terry's face, sending him wailing to the ground. "Here you got it, you fucking piece of shit!" she yelled right at him, "Is it that what you wanted? Why aren't ya laughing, asshole?"

Chloe was about to place a kick at Terry as Justin dragged the raging girl away. With every passing second she calmed down more and more until she was thinking clear enough to focus on Max again, who was still on the ground. She sprinted over to her and kneeled down.

Max's was now almost entirely bloodied by the smeared blood from her nose and from a new wound right above her forehead. She was still unconscious, but breathing steadily.

"We already called an ambulance." mentioned Trevor, earning a thankful nod from a tear shedding, sniffing Chloe.

"Thanks, dude!" she spoke with a weak voice while she caressed her girlfriends head and held her limp hand. "Stay with me, Maxi!"

* * *

Future-Max was still standing on the cliffs, near the lighthouse and gazed at the horizon. For her, it had only been a minute since the younger Max had vanished. Yet, she felt another presence nearby.

"You know very well that you can't defeat the universe," a female voice said, coming closer, "Yet you still encouraged her to go on."

With a wide smile on her lips Future-Max turned around and saw a beautiful blonde woman with a blue feather earing walking towards her before she came to a halt right beside the brunette. "And you know very well that this Max is special…stronger. She will never give up on her."

"I know," Rachel Amber sighed, "But you also know the fate that waits at the end of the road."

Max's gaze dropped. Indeed she knew that the universe always reaches for equilibrium, one way or the other. "I don't envy her. But at least she has a choice."

"We all had a choice. Yet this Max is different. She actually changes fate and creates a unique reality."

"A reality that shouldn't exist. If that doesn't piss off the universe then nothing will."

"Be careful, Max," Rachel now said with a stern tone, giving Future-Max a chiding glare from the corner if her eye, "The universe doesn't like to get fucked with. Don't make this a personal thing. Don't let her suffer for your anger!"

Future-Max didn't reply anything.


	9. Chapter 8: Forgot to Remember

**Chapter 8: Forgot to Remember**

Her fingers brushed softly through brown and orange dyed hair. Besides from the noise outside, quietness filled the room. For the last two hours Chloe had done nothing else than staying at Max's side, holding her hand and comping her girlfriend's bandaged head soothingly. Since she fell on her head at the skate park, the 13 years old girl had been unconscious and needed to be brought to the hospital. There, the doctors found out that Max was probably suffering from a concussion.

Terry Graves was sharing the same fate right now, minus the unconsciousness. In hindsight, Chloe realized that it probably hadn't been the best idea to smash her skateboard into his ugly face, but she didn't regret it. Everybody who was at that skate park and witnessed the drama would agree with Chloe: Terry threw the first punch and Chloe reacted. That's it. Hopefully, his father would come to the same conclusion or else Chloe would be prosecuted again.

Quiet groans brought the blonde girl back from her thoughts. Max was now slowly squirming under Chloe's soft brushes, moving her head from side to side.

"Max? Hey, it's me, Chloe!" Chloe said calmingly, closing in a bit.

"Mmmh…Ch-Chloe…" was Max's moaned reply as she was fighting her way back into conscious.

"Yeah, it's me, Maxi. I'm here!"

"Wh-where am I?"

"You hit your little head pretty hard, so we had to get you to the hospital. But everything's alright. You're gonna be okay!"

Very slowly Max opened her eyes, obviously having trouble to get used to the brightness. And as she finally had managed to keep them open, she looked at a warmly smiling Chloe.

"Hey!" the blonde whispered with watery eyes, but only received a quizzically frown by her girlfriend.

"Wh-who are you?"

"Stop shitting me, Max," scoffed Chloe, giving Max a soft slap on the shoulder, "I was worried sick 'bout you!"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about. M-my name isn't Max, it's…it's…uhm…not Max, I'm pretty sure…I…I-I just can't remember it."

Instantly Chloe's smile faded and was replaced by a stunned expression as realization struck her. "Max, do you know who I am?"

Once more, Max furrowed her eyebrows, trying as hard as possible to remember. "I-I don't…know."

Her lips trembled and a first tear rolled down her cheek as Chloe asked one final question with a brittle voice. "Don't you remember me at all?"

"I…I don't…I…ugh…m-my head hurts like crazy and…Ch-Chloe…I think I'm…I'm gonna…"

Before Max could finish her sentence she burped and eventually threw up all over her bed. Without wasting a second, Chloe pushed the red button to call a nurse and went to get some paper towels from the bathroom.

After everything was cleaned up again, Chloe immediately spoke with the nurse about Max's condition and let her call for a doctor, who did another check-up and eventually called Dr. Mortensen for further consultation.

For an entire hour Chloe had to stay outside the room as long as the doctors were performing some tests to find out more about Max's state. In the meantime Joyce and David had arrived, waiting now for some news, too.

As the door to Max's room opened everybody jumped up, eager to hear about Max's well-being.

"Doc, what's going on with her?" asked Chloe right away, her need for information almost driving her insane.

Dr. Mortensen took off his glasses and inhaled deeply. "Max suffers from partial amnesia," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose, "She can't remember anything personal, like friends, family members or every other person she'd ever contact with as well as dates, names, locations and," and now he gazed at Chloe, "any relationships she's ever been in."

After the last sentence faded in the halls of the hospital, Chloe glared into empty space, her mouth was closing and opening several times, failing to form any words. Names, dates, locations, you could easily learn them again. But a relationship? You can't simply learn to love someone. What if Max wouldn't go down that road of loving a girl this time? What if she doesn't want this relationship? She lacked all those childhood memories now; all those wonderful memories that once formed a bond between them which was stronger than a hurricane.

Chloe's train of thoughts was merely interrupted as Dr. Mortensen touched her shoulder and looked deeply into her watery eyes with a warm smile. "Don't worry, Chloe! Max is still the same person. What once was can still be once more! You just have to win her heart again! And that shouldn't be a problem for you." With a reassuring pat on the shoulder he shifted his attention to Joyce again. "She is, however, able to remember her skills and characteristics, like everything she once learned in school or her preferences and even her hobbies."

"Doc, is this…amnesia gonna be permanent?"

"I wish I could give you an answer to that, but only time will tell. The damage to her head wasn't severe, so I'm surprised that she has amnesia at all. Either way she's going to need a lot of help to find back to her normal life. I suggest that we're keeping her here for the night and tomorrow she can go home."

After shaking their hands, Dr. Mortensen took his leave from Chloe, Joyce and David. All three of them were now standing in the hall, coping what they just heard.

Chloe embraced her body which was soon shaken by heavy sobs as she started to cry. Right away, Joyce took her daughter into a soothing hug.

"She's gonna remember soon, sweetheart! Just give it some time." she said, brushing over the blonde girl's back.

Joyce and probably even David thought that Chloe was crying because she feared that Max would never recall their relationship. But the truth was quite the opposite. Max's amnesia would help her to do what was necessary. She knew that her beloved Max had another Vision; she literally saw the horror in her eyes and only god knows what she had to went through this time. Plus, once again Max had to take the fall for her stupidity.

Since Chloe learned about her girlfriend's Visions and about what Future-Max had told her, she also knew how to break this vicious circle: Max needed to get away from her as far as possible, and the easiest way was to break the bond before Max would be able to rebuild it. And this hurt Chloe more than anything else.

* * *

' _I need to be strong! There's no other way!'_ spoke Chloe to herself internally as she knocked at the door.

"Come in!" it chimed from inside in a happy tone. Before all this Vision-stuff, Max had been a sweet always-happy girl with a hang to zone out too much. Since William's death, however, she had changed a lot, became stern and a bit more mature than she'd already been before. Chloe would always love Max, no matter how much she'd change, but somehow she had also missed the more childish Max.

The Max that was now lying in this hospital room was exactly this old Max. Childish, happy and without any worries. It was like someone had pushed a reset-button.

Chloe took one last inhale to overcome her need to cry on the spot and to build up her strong armor. She pushed the handle down and entered the room with slow, insecure and cautious steps.

' _So much for strong armor.'_

"Hi…uhm…Chloe, right?" Max said with a big, warm smile, "Sorry for giving you any worries! The doctors said that this is quite normal when you have a concussion. But still…ugh, how embarrassing!"

"Uhm…yeah…hey…uhm, no biggie, Maximus. It's okay, I…uh…I already had a concussion, too. Vomited over my Dad and you laughed your ass off." Chloe replied, scratching the back of her head, because she actually didn't know how to talk with someone who suffers from amnesia.

"I did?! Oh, that's very insensitive."

"No, it…it was okay. We all laughed. My Dad, he…uhm…he was a funny guy who didn't mind things like that."

Realizing that Chloe had spoken from her Dad in past tense, Max's looked at her with eyes wide open. "W-was?"

"Yeah, he…uhm…he died in a car crash, more than six months ago."

To Chloe's surprise, Max immediately grabbed her hand and squeezed it softly, which sent an electric jolt through her entire body and let her heart skip a beat. "Oh Chloe, I'm so, so sorry!"

For several moments both girls gazed at each other deeply and right now, Chloe would've loved to do nothing else than to take the small girl into a tight embrace and kiss her dearly. But she couldn't. Not if she wanted Max's suffering for her to end. So, she fought down and suppressed her feelings, trying to act cool, but it was a lost cause. Her feeling for Max were too strong to be simply contained and locked away, instead they crushed down on her like a big wave, letting her shed tears in despair instantly. Lacking any alternatives in this desperate moment, everything Chloe managed to do was to break the contact and leave the room, hoping that Max thought that her breakdown had been caused by grief about her Dad and not because of heartache.

* * *

Entirely stunned, Max stared at the now closed door where Chloe had left in a haste a second ago, asking herself if she'd done anything wrong. As far as she figured out on her own, she and Chloe seemed to be friends, maybe even best friends. But why did she react this way all of a sudden? Mentioning her dad, didn't seem to be the problem. No. But as soon as she'd touched her something had changed.

Before Max was able to give the whole situation a deeper thought, it knocked at the door again and a tall strawberry-blonde woman entered.

"Hello there, sweetheart!" she said with a smile, "How're you doin'?"

"Fine…I guess," Max answered with a shrug, "S-sorry that I have to ask, but…uhm…"

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear," Joyce answered, "I'm Joyce, Chloe's mom."

"Hi Joyce," she greeted with a smile, which faltered as Chloe's behavior jumped back into her mind, "Uhm…can I…can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Max."

The young girl now shifted her gaze to her lap where her fingers fumbled with each other. "Uhm, about Chloe. Wh-why did she act so strange? I-is there something I did wrong in the past or…I don't know."

Joyce suspected why Chloe was so sad; why she was hurting. The two girls love; their bond; had been broken in a blink of an eye and Joyce knew how much this relationship meant for her daughter. But still, she didn't how much Chloe had already told Max or if she even wanted to tell her at all. Therefore, the blonde woman decided to approach this topic slowly. "How much did she tell you?"

"Not much. She…uhm…she told me that her dad…y-your husband died over six months ago, and then…I don't know…she looked at me and I saw that she was hurting, but…"

"Max," Joyce cautiously interrupted her, laying her hand on the freckled girl's, "You and Chloe are very close, know each other since elementary school and met almost every day since then. It's hard for her to understand and to accept that this time together – all those years of friendship – are simply gone for you. Give her some time and be patient, and both of you'll understand and find together again!"

As Max was about to ask what exactly Joyce meant with 'find together again', they both heard Chloe's shouting from outside.

"YOU LYING MOTHERFUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!"

* * *

' _I need to do this! It has to be! Maxi suffered enough for Me.'_ repeated Chloe internally as she left Max's room under tears. Once more, Joyce took her into a tight embrace as soon as she was in the hallway. "I'm so sorry! I'm so, so sorry! I can't do it!"

"Sssh, it's okay, sweetie! I know it's hard for you," Joyce soothed, broke the hug and gazed into her daughter's watery eyes, "Listen, I'm gonna go in and try to explain everything to Max. You stay here until you're ready, okay?"

Giving her mom a nod, Chloe sniffed, wiped the tears away with the back of her hand and let herself fall on a close-by chair, trying to calm down again, while Joyce went to speak with Max.

As someone sat down beside her, Chloe turned around and saw that it was David. Though the blonde didn't really agree with his military-like behavior, she learned to accept him, since he saved Max's life and made her mom happy.

"You know, Chloe," he began, eyes fixed on the opposite wall, "I was never good at talking with people or comforting them. I'm not a father figure or had anything to do with kids, but…I know how it looks when someone has to make a difficult choice. I experienced this in the Army with numerous green COs." Then he shifted his gaze to Chloe, "So, if you need some help or an advice, I'm here, okay?"

"Thanks, David," she said with a faint smile, "I…I really appreciate it, but…"

Then she heard two most hated voices which darkened her mood again and let her clench her hands into fists.

"I hope you gonna sue this punk bitch, Dad!"

She turned her head and saw Terry Graves, his head bandaged, sitting in a wheelchair, who was rolled down the hall by his father.

"I'll give the case to our attorney as soon as we're home. But was it really necessary to hit that Caulfield girl?"

"I didn't hit her, Dad! This cunt went crazy and I just gave her a soft push. It's not my fault that she's too fucking stupid to walk."

Hearing such lies and insults against her girlfriend, Chloe jumped from her seat, ready to place another punch into Terry's face, only David's fast grip held her back.

"YOU LYING MOTHERFUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!" she yelled, squirming in David Madsen's tight hold. The boy's eyes widened in fear while he fell out of the wheelchair as he tried to get away, "Max didn't do shit! You hurt her without any reason!"

"Chloe, calm down!"

"NO! He hurt her! He ruined everything! Lemme go! I'm gonna kill this son of a bitch!"

"Chloe!" David now shouted, tightened his grip even more and made Chloe to look at him before he spoke with a calm voice, "You won't help anyone with this behavior. This dickless fuck there just isn't worth the trouble!"

"You should put this…this _person_ on a leash." now said Gordon Graves as he walked towards them, ignoring his son who was still trying to get back in the wheelchair.

"Maybe you should put your son on a leash. He injured a little girl, who's now suffering from amnesia, deliberately. Chloe has every right to be angry." shot David back, showing that he was on Chloe's side.

"This girl hurt my son and tried to sneak out on a bet."

"Your asshole of a son pushed Max first!" Chloe now shouted once more and would've done more if her mother's voice wouldn't have interrupted them.

"What the hell's goin' on out here?!"

"She insulted me and my son again!" Gordon Graves instantly answered, earning evil glares from everyone.

And once more, Joyce cut Chloe off before she could make anything worse. "Mr. Graves, in this very room lays a girl that has lost all her memories of her friends and family. She's alone and surrounded by strangers, because your good-for-nothing son pushed her after she had an accident. If you have any piece of dignity left, you'd just take him and haul your fat ass outta here! And don't you or any other member of your family dare coming close to my daughter, her friend or the Two Whales ever again! Now fuck off!"

His face now painted red like a ripe tomato out of anger that he'd lost another conversation against a waitress, Gordon Graves turned on the spot, put Terry back into the wheelchair harshly and left the hospital.

Slowly, Chloe's anger abated, but there was still enough to freak out. Oh how much she would've loved to smash another skateboard into Terry's face. But David was right, she wouldn't help anyone with this, not even herself. Therefor she let it drop and gazed at her mother.

"Thanks, Mom!"

"Chloe," Joyce answered sternly, "I want you to go home. It has been a very hard day for you, and both, you and Max need some rest. I'm gonna go back inside and explain everything to her and tomorrow, we'll get Max and bring her home, okay?"

"Yeah," Chloe replied without resistance, because she had a plan now and it needed some preparation.

* * *

As the strawberry-blonde girl arrived at her home, she didn't waste any time and ran upstairs. But instead of her room she went straight into Max's. There she took one of the numerous pictures of her and Max, and gazed at it for some time.

New tear droplets emerged from her eyes as she brushed one last time over a picture that showed her and Max deeply in love, before she threw it on the bed. Another one got ripped off the wall and followed the first picture. Then another and another one, until every piece of memory of their relationship was gathered together, ready to soon be forgotten.

* * *

She looked at her freckled face and wanted to kiss her, but she can't. She had on arm wrapped around her skinny body to help her upstairs and she wanted nothing more then to embrace her tightly, but she can't. Yesterday, Chloe made her decision to break up with Max final by cleaning their rooms from every proof of their relationship, including Max's journals. She would've loved to burn all this stuff right away, but since her Mom had been around the house before she'd finished her work, doing so had been close to impossible without starting any uncomfortable conversations. But right now, Joyce was at work. She'd just dropped them off.

Finally, the two girls had climbed the last step and rested for a short moment.

"Thanks, Chloe! B-but I think I can go the rest on my own." Max said, breaking the embrace.

"You sure?" Chloe asked with an arched eyebrow as she saw how her friend was fighting to hold her balance, but received a determinant nod anyway.

"Mh-hm!"

With slow and cautious steps the brunette began to walk towards her room, using the wall and Chloe's offered hand to hold her balance. As soon as they had entered Max's lair, the smaller girl sat down onto her bed and let her gaze wander around, scanning every picture and object.

"Wowser!" she spoke in awe, inducing a big sting inside Chloe's heart as she was reminded how much she loved this geeky side of Max. It was hard for her not to break down on the spot, so she turned around to hide her grimaced face and the tears that were running down her cheeks.

"D-did I make all of those pictures? Are these my parents? We even dressed as pirates! And we were in Seattle, too! How was it there? I'd love to live in Seattle one day, it's such a cool city!"

Every word, every sentence was like another hit on that nail which was piercing Chloe's heart right now. Fighting down the need to cry became harder with every second. With one last deep inhale, Chloe mustered her last remnants of countenance in order to speak.

"Th-that's good, Max. Y-your parents arrive in a few hours. They're living in Seattle a-and if you want, you can stay there and explore the big city. I-it's okay, really. Listen, I'm…I'm gonna prepare us some lunch and you…you can look around a bit more, 'kay?"

Before Max was able to reply something, Chloe had already left the room and barely managed to reach her own. Right after she'd closed the door the big meltdown came. She wrapped her arms around her body while a stream of tears ran down her in emotional agony grimaced face, yet she still tried to suppress any loud sobs to hide her emotional pain from Max.

After some moments of intensive crying, Chloe took a long sniff, wiped her face with the back of her hand and picked up a cardboard box from under her desk, containing every piece of evidence from her relationship with Max. In a fast pace she walked downstairs and straight to the living room's fireplace, where she sat down and began her hurtful work.

She tried to be strong; tried to be stern, but for every piece of memory she placed cautiously on the remnants of the last fire that had burned ages ago, she shed a single tear. All those photos and other small pieces she once held so dearly were now piled up, ready to be burned and soon forgotten like the smoke that would crawl up the chimney. Finally, she put Max's journals on top of the stack and pulled a lighter from her jeans. With a click a flame emerged, hungry for some fuel.

With trembling lips and flowing tears Chloe moved the lighter closer to the pile, willing to sacrifice this relationship to protect her loved one. The flame was merely inches away from the paper as, suddenly, Max's voice chimed from behind, letting Chloe drop the lighter in surprise.

"Why haven't you told me?"

Entirely taken aback, Chloe spun around, stunned to see Max downstairs and on her feet, despite she was meant to lay in bed and rest. The small girl was leaning against the wall, clearly having some trouble to hold her balance. Her face was pale and sweaty, and more then once she had to gulp hard to fight down her nausea. In her right hand she held a small picture, showing her and Chloe kissing each other.

"What are you doing here? Wh-where did you find that?"

"I found it in my wallet, Chloe! Now tell me what's going on and why you didn't tell me that…that we're…more than just friends!"

Of course her wallet! As Chloe had gathered all those memories she had rummaged through every place she could think of, feeling bad and dirty as she had went through Max's personal stuff…except her wallet. Shaking off her first surprise, Chloe looked away, clearly too ashamed to hold Max's angry gaze. "It's complicated, Max."

"Complicated?!" Max yelled at her, "Are you freakin' cereal?! I want to remember who I am and you just withhold such an important info. That's not okay! That's…" Her glare shifted from Chloe to the pile on the fireplace. "What the…"

Max jumped forward, almost colliding with the dining table, got on all fours and crawled the rest of the way past Chloe, who was remaining still, not moving a limb. The small girl took everything from the fireplace and looked at it with eyes wide open.

"Diaries, pictures, letters…the hell?! D-did you try to burn this?" As she received no answer and realized that every piece of memory had something to do with their relationship, Max almost lost it. "You asshole!" she whispered with a trembling voice, before she let her clenched fists hammer on Chloe's arm and shouted at her again, "You stupid asshole! You tried to hide this from me!"

"I'm so sorry," Chloe spoke quietly, her voice almost failing, "But it needs to be! It…it can't go on like this."

"Needs to be?! Isn't it MY decision what I want to remember and what not? Why the hell did you do that, huh? Why? Answer me!"

"Because I already hurt you enough!" Chloe shouted back, now jumping on her feet, "For the last six months all you did was to take the heat for me and I won't allow this any longer. Yes, I wanted to burn all this stuff behind your back, but only to spare you that heartache, that's it."

For a moment there was complete silence as both girls stared at each other with watery eyes, until Max broke the gaze and shook her head. "You know what, Chloe?" she spoke, her voice now calm, "I'm actually glad that my parents gonna visit me, and I've the chance to go back to Seattle with them, because I don't want to remember such a backstabbing bitch like you." The young brunette picked up the diaries, holding them close to her body, stood up slowly and began to walk back to her room with insecure steps. "You can burn the rest if you want. I don't need it anymore. Goodbye, Chloe!"

* * *

' _It was necessary! It needs to be! I need to be strong!'_

These words went through Chloe's mind in an endless loop. She spoke them to herself every time the crushing feelings of loss and yearning were about to overwhelm her. Sometimes it worked, sometime it did not.

Chloe sat in class, drawing some doodles in her notepad. It had now been three days since Max had gone back to Seattle. Though her parents seemed pretty confused, they obliged her daughters wish to leave immediately after they'd arrived. No chat, no goodbye. And who would ask the motives of a 13-year-old girl with amnesia anyway? Her Mom had asked the blonde why Max left out of a sudden, but Chloe just locked herself in her room and avoided Joyce and any kind of conversation as much as possible.

Like the first time Max had left, Chloe lost interest in everything, even school. She tried to simply live on, but as hard as she tried, the emptiness inside her heart sucked every bit of joy, motivation or any positive feeling in like a black hole. This time she even avoided her therapies.

The bell chimed, ending another period of wasted time. Chloe packed her stuff and would do nothing else than to walk to the next classroom like a zombie and endure the upcoming class like every other class before, with disinterest.

As she was walking down the hall, someone suddenly grabbed her arm, making the blonde to turn around and gaze into the smiling face of Taylor Christensen.

"Hey, Chloe, can I talk to you for a minute…in private?"

"Uhm, yeah…sure…why not." replied Chloe plainly with a shrug, following Taylor into the closest bathroom, where the straw-blonde girl locked the door right behind them.

"I heard what happened to Max," began Taylor, turning towards Chloe, "And I'm really sorry that she went back to Seattle again."

"Maybe it's for the best," replied Chloe quietly, leaning against a stall, her gaze fixed on the ground.

' _It was necessary!'_

Not understanding the older girl's reasons, Taylor looked at her with a frown. "Why? You two were…like…inseparable."

"Taylor," Chloe said, taking a deep inhale as she had to fight down her emotional pain, "you…you wouldn't understand."

' _I need to be strong!'_

"Oh really?" Now Taylor closed in on Chloe and touched her cheek softly, making the taller girl to look at her. "Maybe I understand better than you think."

' _It was necessary!'_

"Taylor, I…I don't…"

' _It needs to be!'_

"I saw how you looked at her. How your eyes sparkled when someone mentioned her name. How you dreamily smiled when you talked about her. How you're hurting right now. I see that hurt in your beautiful eyes and want to heal it."

' _I need to be strong!'_

"T-Taylor…" Chloe stuttered, trying to look away as a tear rolled down her face, but it was instantly wiped away by Taylor's thumb as it brushed over her cheek.

' _I need to stay strong!'_

"You know that I crushed on her, too. So, I'm familiar with that feeling of unanswered love. Maybe," she closed in some more, her face almost touching Chloe's and her voice just a soft whisper, "we can sooth each other." Then Taylor's lips softly collided with Chloe's.

' _Maybe she can give me that strength.'_

At first, Chloe didn't know what to do. Her eyes were wide open and her entire body stiff. But the longer the kiss lasted, the more relaxed she became, until she wrapped her arms around Taylor's body and replied the kiss under tears.

' _Maybe I need her to forget about Max!'_

* * *

' _Why did she do it?'_

Since Max had caught Chloe trying to get rid of their past, she had asked herself this question nearly a million times.

Because of her amnesia, Max had lost every tie she ever had to any person, except Chloe.

Her parents. Yes, Ryan and Vanessa were her parents. She knew it, even somehow felt it and accepted them as such. But building up a new relationship of trust, warmth and secureness was very hard. For the young girl, they were simply still strangers.

Her friends. She didn't remember any friends. And except from a few names she picked up from her diaries she had nothing else. Just another bunch of strangers.

But Chloe…she was special. From the first moment she saw her, Max had felt that there was something more. A bond. No, something much stronger.

She'd now read each of her diaries several times during the last three days and everything she read about Chloe was filled and written down with so much love and affection. Deep feelings you can't simply forget.

But her diaries had revealed something else, too. Something that still sent shivers over her spine. The talk was about Visions. Horrible Visions. Since the entry of William's death her writing had become darker, filled with desperation, hopelessness, but also eagerness and even more love.

Jasmine Graves, the incident in Seattle and the events at the skate park. Did Chloe blame herself for this? Was this the reason?

There was also a notebook that Max had once called her Vision log. A compilation of terrifying nightmares, each of them was about Chloe's death.

All in all, it seemed to Max like that all these events had driven her into insanity. Maybe this was the reason! She was insane, went bonkers and Chloe just wanted to get rid of her. Break up a possibly forced relationship.

' _But…why did she act so strange, then? So sad? It doesn't make any sense,'_ thought Max, sighing deeply, as she was lying on her bed and gazed at the ceiling, _'I need to speak with her, personally, and find out the truth!'_ The young girl jumped up and started to pack her backpack with some clothes. She wouldn't need her Laptop; she can't remember her password anyway. Last but not least she grabbed her camera bag and put in her phone, her wallet and the diaries.

' _I bet Mom and Dad won't be happy if I tell them that I wanna go back to Arcadia Bay so soon. Let alone that I still suffer a bit from this damned concussion. No, I have to do this on my own!'_

In a fast pace she made her way downstairs into the kitchen and took some food and water bottles.

' _Okay, I've got some clothes, phone, food, water and…shit!'_

Now realizing that she also needed some money to get to Arcadia Bay, Max took out her wallet and phone.

' _Dammit! I only have enough money to pay the bus fare to Newport. Ugh, I can't ask my parents for money, they'd get suspicious and never allow me to travel alone. No, I'll take the bus for Newport and will hitchhike from there to Arcadia!'_

Now having a plan, Max put everything back in her bag, wrote her parents a short letter, grabbed her jacket and backpack, and left the house. Destination: Arcadia Bay.


	10. Chapter 9: You can't Forget

**Author's Notes: Heya, dear faithful readers!**

 **Thanks for sticking with me through these last very (and sometimes overly) dramatic chapters! But don't worry, the worst part is over and with this chapter the drama will officially fade out!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: You can't Forget**

Soft and quiet moans chimed through the room. It was a typical girlie-room: white walls, covered with posters of princesses, unicorns, female singers and actresses, plus the one or other actor you'd have a crush on. The furniture, white with pink elements and filled with dolls and other stuff that would normally make Chloe vomit in an instant.

But Chloe wasn't here, in Taylor's room, to admire her taste or to tell her that she'd have loved to blow all this girlie-shit up. No. She wanted to forget. To fill this emptiness inside her heart. To fill it with lust and yearning for physical contact. But did it work? Not by a longshot.

For over thirty minutes Chloe and Taylor were making out now. The strawberry blonde was sitting on Taylor's bed, which was covered with _Hello Kitty_ bed linen, while the younger girl was sitting on her thighs.

Their kisses were hard and eager, lacking any love. Chloe missed Max's slow, cautious and romantic kisses. She missed how insecure Max literally asked with her tongue for permission to enter her mouth. She missed the pure love. She missed how they both lied beside each other for hours, just chatting or chilling and exchanging the one or other sweet kiss. Real love, not this…whatever this was what she and Taylor were doing here.

Taylor broke the kiss and gazed with lustful blue eyes at Chloe. "Damn, you're a darn good kisser!" she said, her breathing heavy.

"Well…gee, uhm…thanks?" was Chloe's plain reply as she avoided the other girl's glare.

"Thanks?!" the straw-blonde scoffed, "Shouldn't it be more like 'Oh Taylor you're stunning, too!' or at least a simple 'Your lips felt so good!'?

Under normal circumstances, Chloe would've pushed Taylor off her legs, flipped her the bird and left without another word. But instead she just shrugged and let herself fall onto the bed, gazing at the ceiling without showing any emotion.

Realizing, that the whole situation with Max seemed to be more complicated than she thought, Taylor laid down too, right beside Chloe, trying to brush her hair, but the older girl shoved her hand away instead.

She sighed loudly. "Listen, Chloe, I know it's hard to lose a good friend and Max really was special, but we need to move on…together!"

"Taylor," now Chloe answered, gazing at her sternly, "I know what you want and what you try to do here, but…" She now exhaled deeply, got up and grabbed her backpack, "It's just not working out. Not like this. I think we should…"

The chiming of her phone cut her off mid-sentence. Chloe took it out of her pocket at glanced at the display. "Sorry, it's my Mom. She probably wants to know where the fuck I am."

Almost fearing to talk with her mother, Chloe reluctantly took the call. "Hi Mom, I'm already on my way. Just…had to get somethin'."

[Joyce]: Chloe, Vanessa just called. Max ran away. She left a message, saying that she wants to come here and talk with you. She also wrote that she'd take the bus to Newport, but it seems like she never arrived there. Have you seen or spoken with her?

Not wanting to talk in front of Taylor about Max, because of the already awkward situation, Chloe left the room and began to head home.

"No, she…uhm, she didn't call or anything. Since when's she gone?"

[Joyce]: Probably this morning. Listen, Chloe, if you know where she is…

"I don't fucking know where she is, okay?" Chloe now blurted in her phone, brushing through her hair, because she blamed herself for this and was already on the edge of freaking out. Once more she'd tried to protect Max and once more it made everything worse.

[Joyce]: (sighed) Chloe, I know you don't wanna tell me what's going on and…(another sigh) Just do me a favor and search at every one of your hideouts.

Reminding that Max probably still suffered from this concussion and her amnesia, Chloe began to worry even more in an instant, "Will do, Mom! Please, tell me if she shows up!"

[Joyce]: Of course, sweetie. Take care!

"Yeah. Later, Mom!"

Chloe hadn't even packed away her phone as it chimed again. This time it was a message from Taylor.

[Taylor]: _Y did u leave out of a sudden?_

Taking another deep inhale, Chloe tried not to rage in an instant. Making out with Taylor had been a huge mistake. Neither did she feel anything for her nor did she WANT to feel anything. Her heart belonged to Max or nobody, period! But this wasn't the time to talk about that. Finding Max was her top priority right now.

[Chloe]: _Max ran away. Gonna search at some of our places._

[Taylor]: _Shit! Need some help?_

[Chloe]: _No! Just call if u see her!_

[Taylor]: _kk_

Right away, Chloe started to ran to the closest special place she could think of.

* * *

She ran and ran. Her lungs were already burning and the world in front of her eyes began to spin. Another wave of nausea almost made her to throw up, but she fought it down again. Breathing heavily, Max finally arrived at the bus station. The small girl took a seat on a close-by bench to recover a bit from her sprint. After some minutes, the dizziness and nausea had finally abated and she was able to walk the last few feet to the ticket counter, where an older woman sat.

"H-hi…" Max gasped, holding on to the counter tightly, "One…ticket…to…Newport…please!"

"Oh I'm sorry, dear! But the bus to Newport already left thirty minutes ago."

"What?! No, I-I have a schedule here, a-and it says that the bus is suppose to leave in 5 minutes."

She showed the saleswoman her smartphone with the opened schedule, who, however gave her an apologetically glare. "I'm sorry to tell you this, dear, but this schedule's sadly outdated. If you want to go to Newport then you could take the evening bus."

"No! That's too late! I need to be in Arcadia Bay this afternoon."

Now the elderly woman pinched her chin and began to look something up in her computer. "Arcadia Bay, you saying? Hmm…ah! You could take the bus to Portland and head on from there. It just takes a bit longer, but you should be there at 4 pm."

Max's eyes sparkled upon this new possibility.

' _Portland might be more northern than Newport, but it's also closer to Arcadia then Seattle, too.'_

"Then I'll take one ticket to Portland, please!"

* * *

Cold rainwater dripped down from a lose strand of strawberry-blond hair on her hoodie, drenching it even more. With shivering clammy hands Chloe brushed the stray hair behind her ear and took one last glimpse back at the treehouse.

An hour ago it had started to rain. At first only a few droplets, but now it was pouring cats and dogs. Nevertheless, Chloe kept on searching for Max, even hiked to their treehouse, although she was already feeling cold and exhausted.

"Dammit Maxi, where are you?" she cursed under her breath and made her way back to civilization.

' _I literally searched everywhere, even the hideouts we hadn't used for years. The only place I didn't look so far is the junkyard, but that's another two hours of hiking from here. Maybe I can ask Mom or David to drive me there, but then it wouldn't be a hideout anymore.'_

Loud rock music suddenly blared from her backpack, telling her that she was receiving a call. Chloe took off the rain cover, pulled out her phone and took her mom's call.

"Mom, have you found her? Is she okay?"

[Joyce]: I'm sorry, munchkin, she hasn't shown up, yet. Where are you?

"I'm in the woods. Thought she'd be at the treehouse. I have another idea where she could be, but…"

[Joyce]: Chloe, we're done for today. It's getting dark and…

"The hell I'm done!" Chloe now blurted in her phone agitatedly, "She's all alone out there and needs me. I won't give up! I…I just can't." First tears of desperation were forming in the corners of her eyes, mixing with the rainwater.

[Joyce]: Chloe, nobody here gives up on her. But we won't find her when its pitch black out there, and you won't help Max if something happens to you, too. Please, Chloe, come home and let us make a plan how to continue our search, okay? Max is smart enough to find a shelter for the night.

"Okay," Chloe spoke weakly with a tight grip around her phone, then coughed and tried to sound normal again, "I'm…I'm on my way. Can you get me from the parking lot near the picnic place?"

[Joyce]: I'll send David to come and get you while I call Vanessa and ask her if they already found something out.

"Okay."

[Joyce]: Chloe?

"Yeah?"

[Joyce]: We'll find her.

"I hope so. I…" She sniffed as her trembling voice broke for a moment, "I want her back! I…I love her so much!"

[Joyce]: I know, sweetie. As soon as we find her you two need to talk!

* * *

As soon as Max stepped out of the bus she stretched her limbs with a groan.

' _Ugh, though I can't remember, I bet my behind that I never liked travelling by bus.'_

Gazing at the dark clouded sky, the young girl let out another sigh and shouldered her backpack.

' _I better find a way how to move on to Arcadia from here before it starts to rain.'_

As she wanted to search for a possibility to travel on, the display of her phone suddenly went dark.

"No!" Max gasped in desperation, trying to boot up her phone again, but it was no use, the battery was dead. Chiding herself internally the whole time that she had forgotten to charge her phone, the brunette girl rummaged through her backpack in order to find her charging cable. Her hand was already closing around the cord as a shocking thought went through her mind: she couldn't remember her PIN and hadn't had the chance to change or learn it, yet.

Inside her head was wild mixture of feelings now. Anger: she was mad about herself; how bad she was prepared. Desperation: from the start her plan didn't work out in the slightest, letting her lose the hope of reaching Chloe. Fear: she was in Portland, without a phone, just a bit of cash and no idea where to go. What if her parents would never find her? Would she have to spend the nights in the streets?

Max would've loved to do nothing else then to sit down and cry, but as an image of Chloe appeared in her head and she remembered why she was doing this journey, the young girl mustered new courage and shouldered her backpack.

' _There has to be a way to head south and reach Arcadia Bay. I can do it. I…need to do it!_

* * *

Joyce, David and Chloe were sitting at the dining table, on it a map of Arcadia Bay and the surrounding area.

Right after Chloe had arrived, entirely drenched by the cold rain, she'd just grabbed a towel for her hair, changed her clothes and then joined her mom and David to plan their next move.

"I looked everywhere I could think of, but there was no sign that she'd even been there," Chloe mentioned, her eyes fixed on the map, trying to remember a hideout she might had missed.

"We also called several transportation companies between here and Newport, including taxi companies, but nobody has seen a girl that would fit Max's description." Joyce added, followed by a sigh, "The police won't start a search before tomorrow, so I guess we'll have to wait until then."

"No!" Chloe blurted out in anger, not willing to give up, "She needs us! We can't give up. We…"

"Chloe," David intervened with a calm voice, "We're not giving up here. But we need to get some rest, make plan and then start anew with a clear head."

Almost unable to control her deep burning rage, Chloe picked up a mug and threw it against the wall, but neither Joyce nor David chided her for that. The blonde walked around the room in order to calm down some more, hot tears of anger running down her face. She blamed herself for this situation and wasn't ready to wait. Maybe David was right. Maybe waiting was the better choice. But if Chloe wasn't good at something, then it was waiting.

Trying to ignore any future complains of her Mom and David, Chloe made her way to the door, put on her shoes and a jacket, grabbed her keys, opened the door and almost collided with the two persons who were standing in front of it.

* * *

She felt cold, her skinny body shivered. Though the constant noise of the train wheels rolling on the tracks had something soothing, Max wasn't able to sleep.

Back in Portland, the young girl had wandered around the streets aimlessly, searching for a way to travel to Arcadia Bay. Although she'd originally planned to hitchhike, Max had skipped this plan immediately after seeing some shady people in the streets and remembered what she'd read in her diary about the incident in Seattle.

Desperation had been a constant follower ever since, until she came close to the industrial part of the city and spotted a train. Somehow she recalled that she'd once read a book about people who were traveling around the country in train wagons. So she simply had to find a cargo train that was heading south, hop on it and hope the best.

Sadly, the weather didn't play along, and long before Max had found the proper train, it had rained cats and dogs. At first she'd tried to keep herself warm by changing into dry clothes and walking around as soon as she'd hopped on a train, but the clammy cold air and the lack of warmth had prevented the young girl from warming up again. Soon, drowsiness and exhaustion had taken over and she didn't want to do anything else but to sleep.

Now, Max was lying on the wooden planks of a train wagon, her mind partially paralyzed by the coldness. She didn't know where she was or how she could escape this situation. All she knew is that she wanted to see Chloe.

Sleep was now about to take over, but a grip on her shoulder let her eyes shoot wide open again.

* * *

Taken aback, Chloe stumbled a bit backwards, staring at the two persons who were illuminated by the lights from inside the house.

The first person was a tall, old, black-skinned man dressed in old, worn clothes, who had his arm wrapped around the shoulders of the second person, which Chloe instantly recognized as Max.

"MAX!" she yelled and took the small, shivering girl into a tight embrace, crying out all the worries.

"Oh my god!" spoke Joyce as she saw her daughter and Max arm in arm, immediately speed-dialing Vanessa's number. "Van, it's Joyce. She's here! Max just showed up at our doorstep!" As the blonde woman additionally heard the sobs of joy and relief by Vanessa through the phone, she couldn't suppress some tears of her own. Everybody was just glad that Max was back and healthy.

Now being relieved, too, David stepped forward and shook the unknown black man's hand. "Thank you very much, Sir, for bringing her back to us!"

"No problem, Sir!" he answered with a soft smile, "Couldn't let that poor little thing all alone out there." The old man gazed at the two hugging girls before he inhaled deeply, his smile even growing wider. "Well, I'll be on my way, then. Have a nice evening!"

He was about to turn around and leave as Joyce grabbed the homeless man by his shoulder, making him to turn around again. "No, please come in."

"Oh thank you, ma'am. But I don't think that you wanna have an old hobo like me in your nice home."

"No, Sir! I insist! That's the least we can do for the savior of our little Max." she replied, almost shoving the man inside.

"Mom," Chloe now said as she'd broken the hug and wiped her wet eyes with the back of her hand, "I'm gonna take care of Max. Warm her up 'n' stuff."

Knowing that her daughter and Max needed some time to talk privately, she nodded with a reassuring smile. "You do that. I think a hot bath should be the right thing for our little runaway here."

"C'mon, Maxi, let's take a bath!"

"O-okay." answered the younger girl as her shoulder was embraced by Chloe, who lead her upstairs.

* * *

Hot water was flowing into the bathtub, making the air in the small bathroom a bit steamy. While Chloe put some soap into the tub and tested the heat of the water, Max sat on the closed toilet, now only wearing a T-Shirt and her panties.

"Why did you run away? I mean, you could've called, y'know."

"Why did you screw me over and literally forced me to delete your number in the first place?"

Receiving such a snarky comment from Max, Chloe just stared at her in surprise until she turned away again, followed by an all-time-favorite "Smartass!"

"Chloe," Max spoke, fumbling with her fingers out of nervousness because she feared Chloe's answer, "Please, tell me the truth. Why did you try to break us apart? Was I kind of insane? Did…did I force you to something?"

Once more taken aback, the blonde stared at Max quizzically, "Why would you think stuff like that?"

"I-I read my diaries…uh, journals, and…" Max sighed deeply, "I mean, Visions?! D-did I really believe in such crap?"

Immediately Chloe stood up and walked over to Max with a stern expression. "Crap?" she blurted out, "You think this is all crap?!" At first, the younger girl thought that Chloe would go all ballistic on her, but then she just took her in a tight embrace. "Your Visions saved my sorry ass so many times! At first, I didn't believe it either, but then…strange stuff happened and…and then you gave me your diaries and…it all made sense. Everything!" She broke the hug and gazed at the smaller girl with watery eyes. "Max, you really can see the future and it almost destroyed you to see me die all the time. That is why I wanted to break our bond, because I have the feeling that your…powers are somehow linked to me. At least that was something your future self said."

"Still," Max responded, unwrapping herself from Chloe's arms, "You should've talked with me about this right away. It hurt, y'know? It freakin' hurt that we were a thing and you just wanted to get rid of me behind my back!"

"I-I know, and…" Chloe answered with a sniff as she felt guilty how bad she'd treated her loved one, her voice now brittle, "…I'm so sorry!"

Instead of responding right away, Max stood up and walked past Chloe, ignoring that she was shedding tears. "I don't know, if I can forgive you. At least not yet. Can you please leave now? I wanna take a bath and need some time to think. Alone."

Sobbing and in a fast pace, Chloe left the bathroom, walked straight to her room and slammed the door shut violently. Then, she screamed out her entire anger. She wasn't mad about Max; Chloe even understood her; but she was angry about herself; how stupid she'd been, sending her love away again. And then this thing with Taylor. Her entire mind flooded with desperation and self-doubts, Chloe picked up one of her snow-globes and smashed against the wall, followed by a second one. She actually loved snow-globes, even had a secret collection even Max never had known about. Well, now it wasn't actually a collection anymore since half of it was lying shattered on the floor. Unable to release all the dwelled up anger that way, Chloe threw herself on the bed screaming into her pillows and hammering with her fists on the mattress until she'd no strength left.

* * *

She was running as fast as possible. Her lungs and legs burned from exhaustion, telling her that they were about to give up. But she couldn't. Not yet. Someone was following her through the dark night. She didn't know who it was, but she knew that this…person meant bad business.

Chloe stopped for a short moment, her breathing heavy and her legs shaking. Resting her bend-over body on her legs she glimpsed back from where she came from, but there was nothing. The street was dark and empty, covered by a thin layer of mist.

For a second the blonde thought that she'd lost her pursuer. But the thought hadn't even been entirely finished as she heard heavy steps, closing in. A silhouette appeared in the distance. It radiated fear, despair and inevitability, letting Chloe's eyes widen in panic. Once more, the young girl started to run, desperately trying to get away from her persecutor.

The strawberry-blond girl knew that it was only a matter of time before her body would give up. She needed a plan to get rid of whoever was following her. And as if someone had heard her pleading, a big, old iron gate appeared at the side of the road. There was a small gap between the two chained halves, big enough for the slender girl to fit through.

Chloe took her chance, dashed towards the gate, the steps behind her getting louder, but as she tried to slip through the gap, she got stuck. Now the steps turned into stomps, getting louder and louder, almost deafening. She squirmed and groaned, trying harder and harder to free her captured body as, suddenly, it slipped through and she hit the pavement with a groan. But Chloe didn't waste any time to rest or to fulfill any other stupid horror movie cliché, she just jumped up and kept on running until the steps had faded and the aura of fear was gone. Now her body was allowed to tune down and instantly she fell on her knees and almost collapsed entirely.

It took Chloe some minutes until she'd calmed down enough to become aware of her surroundings. It was quiet, not one sound chimed, except her breathing and the pounding of her heart. The ground she was kneeling on was some kind of lose dirt and the moisty air smelled moldy. As she wanted to take a look around she spied a tombstone right in front of her. Startled, Chloe gasped and crawled backwards. Only from a distance she realized that she'd knelt on a fresh grave.

The young girl was about to turn around and run away in horror as she saw that she was surrounded by even more tombstones.

"Strange, isn't it?" a male, very familiar voice chimed from behind her, and as Chloe turned around she saw that someone was sitting on the gravestone of the fresh grave, "We always tend to move forwards and try never to look back, until our time comes and the inevitable death stands on our doorstep. When this time comes everyone wants to move backwards and suddenly tries to find safety in the past."

"D-Dad?" Chloe asked with a trembling voice, and as her father directly looked at her, she gazed at his half-rotten face with horror. "Y-your face…" she whispered in fear, covering her mouth while she fought to hold back her nausea.

"Well, sweetheart, the tooth of time gnaws on everyone of us without any mercy. But while it shapes you into a very beautiful woman, it turns me into a…well, less attractive man."

The stomping steps resounded again, but this time from every direction. In pure panic Chloe spun around several times, and every time William sat on another tombstone that was in her sight.

"Tell me, kiddo, what are you afraid of?"

"Th-this whole place freaks me out!" Chloe answered, the panic almost unbearable.

The stomps were getting louder.

"No, I mean in general!" now her Dad said into her face as he suddenly stood right in front of her, his breath carrying death and decay, which made Chloe gag and throw up right away.

After she'd relieved herself from her last meal, Chloe knelt on the ground again, trying to speak with a hoarse voice. "I'm…I'm afraid to lose Max."

"That's true, yet not the entire truth." William responded. Now the steps weren't everywhere anymore, but came from his direction. Beside him, a shadow appeared, now closing in on Chloe. "Most people are haunted by the ghosts of their past, but you…"

The shadow became more solid until it shaped into an older Chloe. She was taller and her hair was entirely dyed blue. Her clothes were way punkier and on her right arm she had a colorful sleeve-tattoo. She stopped a few feet away from her, gazing at her younger Self with wry smirk.

"You fear the future, Chloe. You fear to be alone, one day."

Having a hold on her composure again, young Chloe cautiously stood up, eyes fixed on her older version. "Wh-who is she?"

"Just guess, idiot!" replied the bluenette boldly.

"This would be you in four years, if Max would've left for Seattle right away," William answered, reappearing beside his fifteen years old daughter, "You're biggest fear became true in her reality."

Now, a bunch of people appeared right beside the older Chloe, one by one.

Max. "Max left for Seattle and broke contact after one and a half year."

"No, she'd never do that!"

Joyce. "Receiving no money from the insurance company, your Mom had to work shift after shift to finance the house and your tuition."

David. "Since David never saved Max, you looked at him with prejudice, which lead to an everlasting conflict that weighed heavy on the relationship between you and your Mom."

The older Chloe changed into a slight younger version with strawberry-blond hair. "Having lost every close person changed you. You became more reluctant towards other people, shut yourself in, took drugs to overcome your emotional pain. And then you met her."

A young, blond girl appeared right beside the slightly older Chloe. She was slim, had a very beautiful face, catchy green eyes, a blue feather earring and her attire told everyone 'I don't give a fuck about your opinion'.

"She would change your life. After a long time, you'd finally have a new best friend and for a short period even a girlfriend. She'd give you hope, but in return the rift between you and other people would grow even bigger and eventually," the blonde disappeared again, along with the other shadows, "you'd be alone once more," and formed into a new scenery: a funeral.

A lonely coffin was set above a fresh dug grave and as Chloe gazed at the tombstone, she realized that this was her own funeral. "You'd die in the assumption that nobody cared or loved you, but…" Now bunch of mourning people appeared around her grave, and one person especially caught Chloe's attention.

"Max!" she gasped, tears emerging from her eyes upon this sad story.

"You were never alone, kiddo! Max never forgot you."

The scenery changed several times with one constant element: Max. Chloe could see that with every image the tombstone withered more and more while Max grew older.

"Though she moved on with the time, Max never forgot you. The bond between you two never broke, despite everything that had happened before."

Chloe now approached the last scenery. "Max," she whispered with a trembling voice, touching the wrinkled face of an now old woman with grey hair. Then, she suddenly disappeared into black mist, carried away by a gust of wind.

Another scene formed. This time Chloe and Max were little kids, drawing pictures at the Price's dinner table. And while Max was entirely focused on her sheet of paper with a stuck out tongue, Chloe gazed at her best friend dreamily, her head resting on her hand.

"Aah, I love this one," said William with a warm smile, now looking like a normal, alive person again, "Do you remember how old you two were?"

Chloe remembered this special occasion like it happened yesterday, because it showed the moment where she'd become aware of some deeper, yet unknown feelings for her best friend. "Yeah," she said with a warm smile, "I-I was twelve and Max was about to turn eleven."

"Yes. You see that sparkle in your eyes. I'll never forget that. From this moment on I knew that you two would be inseparable, forever."

"And Ever." the blonde instinctively completed the sentence, wiping away another tear.

Once more the black mist formed another moment of the two girl's childhood. This time, Max and Chloe, dressed as pirates, were lying on the ground, gazing at each other deeply after they'd playfully wrestled and fought their childish giggles and voices chiming in the air.

(Chloe): Gotcha!

(Max): No you don't, oh foul Captain Bluebeard!

Silence.

(Max): Uhm, Chlo? A-are you okay? S-something wrong?

(Chloe): Just admiring your dorkiness, dork!

"The moment I started to have a crush on her!"

"Nailed it!" her Dad commented, embracing the shoulder of his daughter, "But look closer!"

And the she saw it: the same sparkle in Max's eyes that she had in the other scene. "Sh-she started to crush on me, too!"

"But in contrast to you, she got scared by those feelings, until…"

Another voice chimed in the air softly, like the whisper of the wind.

(Max): I dare you to kiss me!

Then the mist shaped once more in different sceneries: moments they shared together. Their talks, their first kiss, times when they were laughing and crying together, emotional moments and finally, New Year's eve.

(Max): Forever and Ever!

As she remembered all those moments; the whole time she'd always spent together with Max, Chloe sobbed while emotional tears were running down her cheeks.

"But sadly," William began, his voice chiming from a bit away now, "Everything is doomed to end someday." He was now sitting on another tombstone behind an open grave. His face literally melted away and turned into this half-rotten grimace again.

Chloe took a few steps closer in order to gaze into the hole in the earth. In it was another coffin, but the true horror overwhelmed her as she read the tombstones inscription.

"No!" she gasped, stumbling backwards, "Not her! Please, not her!"

"The future is treacherous, Chloe. It never reveals itself to us until it's too late. And while the ghosts of the past can be bad as well as good, the ghosts of the unknown future aren't anything of it, until they become a ghost of the past. But Max…" her Dad jumped from the stone which had _Maxine Caulfield_ written on it, and brushed with his fingers over the coffin, "She found a way to give your future an identity and the possibility to change it, so that you don't have to be afraid of it anymore."

"But what's the use of it when she has to die for this?!" Chloe blurted back, panic and desperation taking over again.

"You tried to safe her by breaking the bond. But how can you break something that even lasts beyond death?"

"It doesn't matter, okay? She doesn't remember our past anyway."

"Chloe, memories are good and nice, but eventually they're also nothing more than souvenirs we're picking up on our way through life. But feelings are something entirely different. You can't forget them. You can't forget something like this bond. You can't forget love. And sometimes…" A knock appeared from within the coffin, making Chloe jump backwards. "Sometimes things that we thought were gone, reappear and are very much alive!"

Once more it knocked from the inside of the coffin, but this time Max's voice joined in, too.

"Chloe?"

Cautiously, Chloe closed in on the wooden coffin and as she wanted to open it, everything went dark, only the knocking remained.

* * *

"Chloe?"

With a groan, Chloe turned onto her back, feeling dizzy and drowsy. It took the young girl some time to realize that the knocking and Max's voice hadn't been a part of her dream, but reality.

Mustering every bit of willpower, the young blonde fought down the need to stay put, stood up and wavered to the door. As soon as she'd opened it and gazed into Max's freckled face, she straightened her body a bit and tried not to look like a mess.

"Uhm…h-hey Maxi!"

"Hey," Max responded with a faint smile, but Chloe saw that she wasn't doing so well, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah…yeah, sure!"

After Max, who was wearing her pajama, had walked past her, Chloe wished from deep inside that it would be like the last time they needed to talk. She hoped that Max would stand right behind her, waiting for her to turn around and then plant a kiss on her lips. But it was nothing more than wishful thinking. Max simply was sitting on Chloe's bed, fumbling shyly with her fingers.

Even after Chloe had closed the door and was now sitting on the chair at her desk, a heavy silence filled the room.

"So…uhm…" Chloe began, trying to overcome the awkward moment, luckily Max took over right away.

"Chloe, I don't want our friendship to end!"

"Yeah, me neither." Remembering her nightmare and everything she experienced there, Chloe took the initiative, got up and sat down beside her friend. "Listen, Maxi, I'm so, so sorry that I fucked up, okay? I-I panicked and didn't realize that I made a huge mistake. What I did was just wrong and I deserve your rage, but please…" She took the younger girl's hand and gazed into her blue doe-eyes deeply. "…don't leave me. I-it's okay if we simply stay friends, just…stay. Please!"

Another moment of heavy quietness occurred, the tension of waiting for Max's answer almost unbearable. Then Chloe saw something that surprised her: her friend's eyes got watery and before the first tear rolled down her cheek and a soft sob escaped her mouth, she stood up and walked towards the door, stopping in front of it.

"I want to, Chlo. I really want to stay and learn more about the person that meant so much to me, but…" She paused and sniffed, already reaching for the door handle, but before she was able to push it down, Chloe approached her and took Max into a soothing embrace, which the smaller girl answered by pressing her friend even closer.

Chloe felt guilty for what she'd done, so it was even more important to her to show Max that she was still there for her. "It's okay, Maxi," she told her, brushing through the younger girl's brown hair, "We'll find a way to make this work again."

"But we just can't, Chloe." Max almost blurted back, breaking the hug, "My parents called and…and they were so mad about me. I told them that it was complicated and I need more time, but…they…they're gonna get me back to Seattle tomorrow right in the morning. And…" She sniffed once more, fighting to bring out her next words. "…they grounded me until I'm eighteen and I…I think that they will never allow me to come back here."

"Then I'll come to you, Maxi! C'mon, we already conquered the Bay and now we'll take over Seattle!" Chloe told her, trying to cheer Max up, "And how about we spend the entire day together? Just the two of us. Plenty of time to learn a lot about this charming girl here! What do you say?"

"But don't you have school?"

"Fuck school! You're way more important!"

"B-but my parents…"

"They already grounded you until you're eighteen, how worse can it get? C'mon, dude!"

A wide smile appeared on Max's face. A smile which told Chloe that she'd hit the right nerve.

"Okay!"


	11. Chapter 10: Starting a New Life

**Chapter 10: Starting a New Life**

A wind breeze brushed softly over their faces as Max and Chloe were sitting on the bench right beside the lighthouse, having an early morning breakfast while gazing at the still dark blue horizon.

"It's really awesome up here!" Max spoke, taking another bite from her sandwich.

"Yeah," Chloe replied, looking at her friend from the corners of her eyes with a smile, "You always loved the view. I don't even know how many shots you did from up here. A million?"

Then, Max's gaze dropped and she began to fumble with her fingers again. Chloe knew what this meant. Since they first met each other, Max had always done this when she felt uncomfortable.

"I still have it, y'know. This…urge to make photos all the time. But…I-I…I don't know…I'm kinda scared that I can't do it anymore; that I forgot how to do it."

"Well," Chloe responded, smiling and touching the brunette's shoulder encouragingly. "You'll never know if you don't try!"

"I-I don't know."

"C'mon, dude! Here," Chloe stuffed the rest of her sandwich into her mouth and turned towards her friend, "I'll even be your model. Now shoot!"

Reluctantly, Max reached inside her cam bag and brought forth her instant camera. She didn't even have to think about it twice how to use it and bring Chloe into focus. She simply adjusted her angle a bit and hit the trigger. The photo emerged from the cam with a whirring sound and was snapped by the blonde girl right away.

"Yup, you still got it!" she cheered with a smile, handing the picture to Max who looked at it for quite some time, making Chloe almost worry about her. "You're alright, Maxi?"

"Yeah," was Max's soft, dreamy answer, "I kinda feel that this place meant a lot to us."

"It still does…at least for me."

Now Chloe turned away, her good mood from one moment to another gone. As Max shifted her gaze from the photo towards her, she saw a single tear rolling down her cheek, which the blonde wiped away with her hand instantly.

"Chloe, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," she replied with a brittle voice, trying to hold her composure, but her feelings and the thought of losing Max overwhelmed her eventually. Chloe jumped up and began to yell, not at Max but at the world that let this terrible accident happen. "Everything's wrong, Max. Fucking. Everything! You see this?" She walked over to the board that showed a map of Arcadia Bay, on it a drawn skull, "I drew this to mark the location of our tree fort. Or this," she pointed at a tree stump with carvings on it, saying: _Max and Chloe BFF Pirates 2008_ , "We carved this into the stump two weeks before my Dad died. And…and over there, we…we…"

Chloe buried her face in her hands while hot tears emerged from her eyes and loud sobs escaped her mouth. In some way, she felt alone. Before the accident she'd shared those wonderful memories with Max, but now…now she was the only one who had them.

As the blonde was taken into a tight embrace by her friend, she just pressed her even closer and cried into her shoulder. Oh how she'd missed to be hugged by Max. To feel her warmth. To smell her fragrance. To feel the beat of her heart on her chest.

"Chloe," now Max spoke softly, making the blonde girl to look at her, "I-I know it kinda sucks that I can't remember any of this, but…those memories are not lost. They live on! In here!"

As Chloe felt Max's hand right above her heart and saw how deeply she gazed into her eyes, she almost stopped breathing. It had always been special moments like these that had defined their deep relationship – their bond – and just at this moment, Chloe recalled her last night's nightmare.

' _Sometimes things that we thought were gone, reappear and are very much alive.'_

' _You can't forget feelings.'_

' _How can you break a bond that even lasts beyond death?'_

Her lips trembled. Chloe would've loved to do nothing else but to tell Max that she loved her. That she wanted to be in a relationship with her again. That she wanted to kiss her again. But was it the right time? Chloe didn't care. Her piled up feelings screamed for release and she wanted to let them out. However, before she was able to do so, her phone began to buzz inside her pocket.

Knowing who this would be, Chloe broke the contact with a big sigh, turned away, pulled out the phone and took the call.

"Hi, Mom!"

[Joyce]: (agitated) Chloe Elizabeth Price, you and Max will move your behinds back home this instant!

"Sorry Mom, but…we won't. Max and I need some time to figure things out between us, and…" she sighed once more, her words almost failing, "I…I wanna spend some time with her before…before she's taken away from me again."

[Joyce]: (sighing) Chloe, her parents will be here in a few hours and you have school.

"I-I don't care. Mom, it needs to be. We'll be back before sundown. I'll talk to you later."

[Joyce]: (yelling) Chloe, if you hang up…

Before her mom was able to speak out her threat, Chloe had already terminated the call and set her phone into flight mode.

"They want us to come back, right?" said Max, touching her friend's shoulder.

"Yeah," Chloe replied with a nod, pinching the bridge of her nose while she exhaled deeply, "But it doesn't matter." Then she turned towards the brunette girl with a wry smile. "Max, you're right! All those memories live on inside me and…I need to tell you. I wanna show you how awesome we've been together and why our friendship was so special. So, are you in on this?"

A faint feeling of doubt about this little adventure emerged from within Max's conscious, telling her that they would get a in a lot of trouble for this, but she didn't care. Chloe's idea was exactly why she came here. She wanted to know everything about her relationship with Chloe, or better experience it, therefore her mouth formed a big smirk, answering her friend's question with a big, "Definitely!"

* * *

The polished surface of the rails and the dewdrops in the surrounding grass glistened in the morning sun, giving the whole scenery a magical touch while early birds sung their songs.

Right after Max had agreed to join Chloe's adventure, they left the lighthouse and made their way out of town. Always aware to keep away from buildings or main streets to avoid the authorities or anyone who could be on the search for them. Because the day was still young, both weren't in a rush and therefore took their time. During their walk Chloe had already told Max about their past, and right now the younger girl was talking about her journey from Seattle to Arcadia Bay.

"Damn Maxi, that had been one hell of a ride, huh?"

"And plain stupid!" added Max with a lowered gaze, "I was just lucky that Mr. Jenkins found me and brought me here."

"Yeah, I owe him one…or even more," then she stopped, sighing deeply as a wave of sorrow rushed through her mind, "I don't know what I would've done if I'd lost you." Once more recalling her nightmare, Chloe sniffed and shed some tears. Her Dad had been right, she felt alone, especially without Max and knowing that her beloved one would return to Seattle by the end of the day almost let her despair, until, suddenly, she was tightly embraced by the younger girl.

Right away, Chloe wrapped her arms around Max's back and pressed her even closer, enjoying the soothing warmth. At this very moment, the blonde knew that Max would always be there for her, but what she didn't realize was the younger girl's warm smile and the faint brushes Max was giving her on her back.

* * *

"C'mon Maxi, we're almost there!" spoke Chloe in excitement, sprinting the last few yards towards their destination, Max following her stat.

As the first rusted cars and scrap came into her sight, she stopped and grinned widely. "Well, Maxi," she said, flinging one arm around the smaller girl's shoulders, "Welcome to our new lair!"

For a long moment, Max took in the scenery, her mouth forming a wry smile. "A junkyard? Cool!"

"Ha, I knew you'd like it! C'mon, I show you around!" Chloe said enthusiastically, grabbed her small hand and guided her around the junkyard, pointing at different objects. "Okay, here we have some smut mags for entertainment…"

"Eww!"

"A makeshift cinderblock shack for a pirate cave…"

"Neat!"

"Aaand – what every pirate needs – a ship!"

"Whoa, so cool!" Gazing at the old boat in awe, Max took out her instant cam and made a picture. "I already have a million ideas how to upgrade this thing!" she added, taking another picture, "And what's over there?"

Before Chloe was able to say anything, Max was already on her way, scanning every bit of scrap that was lying around until she stopped in front of a wrack of a blue station wagon, brushing over the hood with her fingers. She then sorrowfully gazed at Chloe with wide open eyes as the blonde came closer.

"Is this…?" the brunette started, not daring to finish the sentence. Instead, she shifted her glare back to the like a gravestone styled hood of the destroyed car.

"Yeah," Chloe answered calmly, embracing Max's shoulders once more, "We found it the last time we were here together. Now I just wanna use it as some sort of a shrine. As a place to talk with my Dad." She sighed, wiping a single tear away, "I learned to accept it. Thanks to you!"

In surprise, Max looked at her friend, finding that she was equally gazing at her deeply with a wry smile. "I-I don't know." The younger girl turned around and walked away to an old, rusty truck while Chloe followed her with a bit distance. "Everything feels so unreal. You always say that I did this or we did that, but…for me they're simply some stories from another person."

"But they're our stories!"

"I-I know, but…it makes me kinda sad to not recalling them; to…not recalling…us."

Once more, both looked at each other for some time. Slowly, Chloe closed in, closer and closer, until she was standing right in front of the smaller girl whose breathing became shallow.

"You know what I used to do all the time with you, when you'd been upset?" Chloe ask quietly, receiving a shy headshaking, "I…TICKLED YOU!"

As her sensitive spots were being pinched by her friend, Max burst out into loud laughter, squirming under Chloe's merciless tickle attack. Trying to get away, Max reached for the handle of the trucks door, which immediately opened and let both girls lose their balance. Using her chance, Max jumped up and into the vehicle, closing the door shut right behind her.

"Now try to get me, dork" she mocked, blowing Chloe a raspberry. Not wasting a second, the blonde walked around the truck, heading for the passenger's door, which Max locked quickly too, before her friend had reached it.

Now being robbed of her last chance to gain access, Chloe climbed onto the cargo bed and jumped up and down. "Woo-hoo, heavy swells ahead, Long Max Silver! How are ye doin' in there, matey?"

About to get sick by the constant up and down and back and forth, Max opened the door and left the vehicle, trying to run away with insecure steps until she stumbled and hit the ground with a groan.

"Max!" screamed Chloe, worry chiming with her voice. She jumped off the truck and sprinted towards her friend, "Max, you're okay?"

Max turned on her back, giggling and covering her eyes. "Geez, I almost puked in that thing. But it was fun; you should try it, too!"

Relieved that she was okay, Chloe collapsed beside Max, now snickering, too. "Y'know what would be awesome?"

"Mh-mh."

"To make this rust bucket over there our 'ship'. We would be free to go wherever we want, even make a road trip."

"That really sounds awesome," commented Max a bit dreamy, but then raised her head to glimpse at the old truck, "But as you said, it's a rust bucket and we're not allowed to drive this thing anyway."

"So?" Chloe said, jumped up, walked over to truck to take a closer look and spoke enthusiastically. "Next year I'm gonna be sixteen and get my license. You follow a year later. So, we have plenty of time to get this bad boy into shape again. Plus," She now approached Max again and leaned down to the still on the ground lying girl. "Someone once told me that I'm pretty handy."

With a deep-red blush on her face, Max turned away. "Ch-Chlo, I-I…"

"Chill, Maxi," the blonde snickered, "I meant my Dad. He once said that I've some talent when it comes to handiworks."

"Okay, so you wanna repair the truck?"

"Yeah!"

"All by yourself?"

"Together with you, of course."

"And you think we can do that?"

"Yup! So, you're in?"

Always been unable to withstand Chloe's catching mischievous, toothy smile, Max sighed in defeat with a smirk, nodding with her head. "Yeah, why not?"

"Awesome!" cheered Chloe, immediately taking her friend in another tight embrace, and as it was broken again, Max somehow felt sad upon missing the comforting warmth and unique scent of the blonde. "Okay, here's the plan. Firstly, we gonna clean up this shack over there to have a place to chill for the start. Maybe pimp it with some seats or even a couch 'n' shit. Secondly, we'll take care of that ship. Put some graffiti on that thing, clean it up, scrub the deck…"

"And I'll catch everything with my camera!" threw Max in with a sweet smile that made Chloe almost melt away.

"Damn Caulfield, no matter what, you'll always be my photo-geek! But yeah, let's do it!"

* * *

"Ohlala, obviously someone got rid of his porn collection," said Chloe as she rummaged through a cardboard box full of pornographic magazines, "Damn Maxi, look at that chick!" she added and unfolded a big poster of a nude female model.

"Eww! I don't wanna see that crap! Put it away!" answered Max as she looked away with a slight blush.

"Alright," The blonde shrugged and stuffed the magazine back in the box, which she threw out the window right after, "You're more into hentai anyway."

"What?!" blurted the younger girl, staring at her snickering friend with wide opened eyes, now with an intense reddened face, "Wasn't it your mag?"

"Yup, but you couldn't take your eyes off it."

Now blushing even more, Max turned away in embarrassment, feigning to be focused on a pile of trash in front of her. Instead, a lot of different thoughts and feeling flooded her mind, almost driving her crazy. Luckily, Chloe's voice dragged her back into reality.

"Hey, check it out!" With a wide, toothy smirk, the blonde brought forth a big pirate-flag, showing it proudly. "If this isn't a sign that this place needs to be our new hideout, then I'll be damned!"

"Totally a sign, Chlo!" replied Max with a wry smile, just being glad for the distraction, "Now we just need to get some order into this pigsty."

"But you know that pirates aren't that clean, do ya?"

"Then Long Max Silver will be the first tidy pirate who ever sailed the seven seas!"

For the next few hours, Max and Chloe were busy cleaning up their new pirate cave. Most at the stuff that had been piled up in there was brought outside and thrown away by the girls, while some other stuff, like an old couch, was brought inside to make this place more livable. Chloe had even found a small, still functional radio, so that the two girls could listen to some music while they were working.

By noon, they were almost done and satisfied with their work on the shack. During their lunch, both girls made even more plans on how to decorate this place. It was like they were building their own world. A world just for the two of them. A world where they both would be able to have fun and relax the entire day without any worries.

After Max and Chloe had finished eating, they shifted their attention towards the old boat. At first they needed to build a makeshift ladder in order to access it. From up there they enjoyed the view over the junkyard for a moment before the girls began to throw every useless trash off the ship. Then, Chloe built an improvised flag pole out of an old pipe for their pirate flag. During their search for more building material, they even found some paint and a halfway useable brush.

Originally, Max had planned to draw some butterflies and flowers on that boat, but Chloe immediately intervened, telling her best friend that this would be a pirate ship and not a love boat – except she wanted it to be one, which brought the wished blush on the younger girls face and for Chloe another reason to laugh at her. But Max didn't mind, she was just glad that they both had fun and mocking each other was definitely a part of it.

With the passing hours the sun went down further and further, the day reaching its final stage. Sitting on their new styled boat, Max and Chloe sat side by side, enjoying the scenery of the junkyard in the middle of the quiet and calming nature. They both knew that their separation approached mercilessly.

"It was fun," said Max with a smile, taking a bite from a chocolate bar she had in her hand that was covered with some red paint.

"I'm glad you liked it," answered Chloe, flinging one arm around her friend's shoulders.

Once more only the sounds of nature surrounded them, until Chloe took out her phone and sighed loudly as she gazed on the screen, which showed numerous missed calls and ignored messages.

"We should head home though, or else my Mom will kill me right on sight."

She was about to get up as, surprisingly, Max shuffled closer and laid her head on Chloe's shoulder, making her heart skip a beat. "Chloe, I don't wanna leave! This day has been so awesome and just to imagine leaving all this behind feels so wrong."

"I know," Chloe answered with some melancholy, and both girls stayed like this for another moment, until the blonde girl heard a soft rock ballade chiming from the radio. A smirk appeared on her face as she had another idea to lighten up the mood. "Say Maxi, care for a last dance?"

Taken aback by this question, Max backed away a bit to look at her friend with furrowed eyebrows. "Have we ever danced before?"

"No."

"Can I even dance?"

"Probably not," Chloe replied with a shrug, "But neither can I. So," Now she stood up, dusting off her behind and reached Max her hand, "Care for a dance, milady?"

With a wry smile and a shaking head, Max took Chloe's hand and got up, too.

Taking position on the ship's deck, they both embraced each other tenderly and began to move to the rhythm of the music.

Entirely enjoying this closeness, Max closed her eyes, laid her head on Chloe's shoulder again and let out a deep exhale.

Taken by the moment, Chloe brushed softly with her fingertips over Max's back, now shutting her eyes, too.

"Chloe?" Max spoke quietly.

"Hmm?"

"I-I need to tell you something."

"Shoot!"

Slowly and very cautiously, Max broke the embrace to look into her friend's deep-blue eyes, feeling pretty nervous about the words which were about to leave her tongue.

"I-I think I've fallen in love again!"

Not knowing what to reply upon those words that were carried away by the wind, Chloe stayed entirely stunned with wide open eyes, not even moving a limb as Max closed in and their lips tenderly met for a short, soft kiss.

With an amorous smile on her lips, Max pressed Chloe closer again, whispering a relieved, "Yeah, that feels right."

First tears of joy emerged from Chloe's eyes as she replied her girlfriend's embrace, now finally able to speak those words, she wanted to say for some time now, but never dared to do so, "I love you, Maxi!"

Even after the calm song had ended and some heavier music played, both girl's remained arm-in-arm, still moving slowly to a melody that had already faded for some moments now.

* * *

Having packed the rest of their stuff, Chloe closed her backpack and glimpsed one last time at their new styled lair, nodding satisfied. She then grabbed her pack, left the cinderblock shack and closed the entrance with a metal plate.

"Max?" the blonde girl called out as she couldn't see her now _fresh_ girlfriend.

"I'm here!" the younger girl replied immediately.

Following her voice, Chloe found her not far away, standing in front of a barrel, holding something in her arms that she couldn't make out right away.

"Yo Maxi, 'sup? Somethin' wrong?" the older girl asked with some concern, the fear that Max could've changed her mind regarding their new relationship always in the back of her head.

"You still got a lighter on you?"

"In my backpack, yeah. Why?" Getting more and more curious about what's going on, Chloe came closer and as Max turned towards her, she saw that the smaller girl was holding her latest diaries and the Vision log book in her arms.

"Y-your diaries!" Chloe gasped quietly. But she didn't need to ask any further, because right away, Max told her why she wanted to get rid of them.

"Chlo, I-I know that it'll be hard for you to understand, but…th-the moment I kissed you, everything changed…inside. I realized that…that I'm not this old Max anymore." She sighed, shaking her head and trying to suppress some tears. "I read them. Several times, but for me they're nothing else than a bunch of stories from another person. This," she held up her latest diary, "Is nothing more than…"

"…a souvenir." Chloe finished her girlfriend's sentence, letting the brunette look at her in surprise. "Someone once told me that memories are nothing more than souvenirs we're picking up on our way through life. What really counts," she took a step closer and touched Max's cheek softly, "are our feelings…and love."

With a sniff, Max closed in and embraced Chloe tightly, her next words only whispered. "I wanna start anew. A fresh start. A new Life. Without all this crazy stuff that had happened. Without these horrible Visions. I know that it sucks for you; that you miss your old Max, but I'm not her. I'm a new Max and I wanna make my own experiences; have my own life. I-if that's not okay with you, then…"

"I don't care if you're the old or the new Max. You'll always be my Max and I'll always love you!"

Letting out a sob of joy upon this commitment, Max pressed her beloved Chloe even closer before she broke the hug for a long, yet tender kiss.

"I love you, Chloe!" she spoke softly, every syllable filled with emotion.

Without another word, Chloe reached inside her backpack and pulled out her lighter, handing it to Max. The young girl took it, threw her diaries into the empty barrel and ignited them. Eagerly, the ever-hungry flames spread out and consumed the lettered paper. Arm-in-arm both girls watched how Max's past; the old Max; was burned into smoke and ashes, carried away by the late-afternoon wind.

* * *

It was evening. Only the last reddish sunrays enlightened the house in front of the two young girls, who were holding each others hand tightly.

"I'm scared, Chlo," said Max quietly, wishing to run back to the junkyard.

"Me too," Chloe added, but gave her girlfriend a reassuring squeeze and a wry smile in order to give her some strength, "Just remember what we talked about."

"No matter what happens, we stay together…or they can suck a dick!" recited Max with mischievous smirk, making her girlfriend to giggle.

"Damn, you really haven't changed. My bad attitude still rubs off on you!"

The front door opens and three pairs of anger radiating eyes glimpsed at them chidingly, killing their good mood in an instant.

"H-hey Mom, we…uhm…we're b-…" began Chloe cautiously with a faint smile, but was interrupted by Joyce right away.

"Get inside, right now!" she almost yelled in anger, and both girls knew that there was no room for discussion or excuses at this moment.

As they tried to walk past the adults, Max was immediately taken into a tight embrace by her mother.

"Oh Maxine, I'm so glad that you're okay," she said, but broke the embrace right after that to gaze at the young girl chidingly, "Don't you ever do this again! We were worried sick about you!"

"I-I'm so sorry, Mom. But I needed to see Chloe."

"Why haven't you just asked? We would've given you the money for the trip." added Ryan, hugging her, too.

"I-I wasn't sure, and I…I needed to see her right away and…" she tried to explain, her eyes welling up out of guilt, because she'd caused her parents so much worry.

"Ryan, Van. We better talk about this inside, okay?" said Joyce calmly.

Giving her a slight nod, Ryan led his wife and Max inside. The 13-year-old girl took a seat a the dining table right beside her girlfriend, who immediately took her into a soothing embrace and planted a peck on her head, making Ryan, Vanessa and Joyce to look at them with raised eyebrows.

"Told you guys that we needed to figure some things out between us." Chloe dryly commented with a smirk, but nobody was else smiling. And to everyone's surprise, it was Max's Dad who lost his temper this time.

"On and off, back and forth all the time. I know that puberty is everything else than easy, but this…?" He had to inhale deeply to calm himself down a bit, Vanessa's hand on his arm helping a bit. "It can't go on like this! I and Vanessa were so worried about our little Max that we moved everything to find her. And only thanks to a homeless man nothing worse happened. It…" For a moment he lost his composure, needing a few more seconds to getting it back together. "It simply can't go on like this."

Throughout the last six months, Chloe had learned that raging and provoking never helped when she's talking with grown-ups, therefore the blonde decided to talk about how they're feeling right now; about the positive side of this mess. "Ryan, I know that I fucked up big time and that what Maxi did was plain stupid, but…we're back together and that's what counts!"

"Chloe," Vanessa now spoke calmly in return, shaking her head slightly, "I'm sorry to say this, but that's not what counts here. This is about our daughter, her well-being, her future and I…No, WE think that the both of you need a time-out and especially Max needs a steady life. We witnessed how she'd changed during these last six months and it scared us. It fears us so much that we have a hard time focusing on our jobs. We fulfilled her wish as we let her stay with you and I learned to accept your relationship, but that's as far as it goes."

"Please, don't!" Chloe whispered with a trembling voice, pressing her already quietly sobbing Max closer.

"Chloe, Vanessa's right! You two went way too far this time." Joyce backed up Vanessa, letting her daughter despair even more.

Now Ryan continued to speak. "We decided to take Max back to Seattle with us, period. The decision is final and we'll leave as soon as you two said goodbye to each other."

"Ryan…Van…Mom, please! Don't do this!" the blonde pleaded, but once more, none of their parents even showed the slightest hint of pity.

"I'm sorry, but we won't discus it any further this time," answered Ryan sternly, "We'll give you two some space now and wait outside."

After their parents had left, Max and Chloe's small world, which they'd built together at this very day, crumbled into dust. Both now embraced each other even more, crying, not willing to get separated again.

"My heart hurts so much, Chlo!" whimpered Max, "It hurts so badly!"

"Mine too," replied Chloe with a sniff, "I love you, Max! I love you so much!"

Unable to withstand this pressure and pain anymore, Max freed herself from Chloe's embrace and ran out of the house, avoiding any interactions with her parents and Joyce as well. She simply entered the car and broke down in a lake of tears. At this point she neither did realize nor cared that her Mom and Dad had now taken their seats too, ready to leave. The young girl heard how the car's engine came to live, but what she also heard was Chloe's faint voice, screaming her name, fading in the distance as they drove away. She didn't know how long they'd already driven – it probably wasn't that long – as Ryan abruptly hit the breaks hard.

Max's Dad opened his door and yelled at someone outside, "Chloe, are you out of your mind?!"

"Chloe!" gasped Max and watched out the front window. Chloe, who had taken a short-cut through some neighbors gardens, was standing right in front of the car, her arms spread, blocking the road.

"You're not taking her away from me!" she replied towards Ryan, her voice a mixture of gasping for air and trembling emotional pain that was also radiated by her red-cried eyes and the wet lines on her face.

"Chloe Elizabeth Price, get off the road, right now!" now Vanessa joined in, getting out of the car, too.

"No! You have to run me over first and then drag my fucking carcass out of the way!" retorted the blonde, holding the brunette woman's angry gaze.

Seeing how much Chloe wanted to keep her at her side; that she was even willing to take a high risk by jumping in front of a car, Max couldn't hold back anymore. She jumped out of the car, ran past her Dad and collided with her girlfriend, taking her into the tightest hug possible.

"I just can't let you go, Maxi! I already made this fucking mistake, twice and regretted it every time. I won't let this happen ever again!" whispered Chloe with determination, which was answered by four whispered words, which she'd missed so much.

"I love you, Chloe!"

* * *

Once more they were sitting at the Price's dining table. And once more they were talking about how to move on.

"Why can't I just go to Seattle with her?" asked Chloe into the round, trying eagerly to find a way to stay with her girlfriend.

"Yeah, why not?" added Max, "My room's big enough a-and I really don't mind taking her in."

"Because Chloe's finals are coming up," Joyce answered. "And if she wants to go to Blackwell, then…"

"You and Dad wanted me to go to Blackwell, and I'm just doing it to honor his wish," her daughter replied with crossed arms, "Besides, the finals won't be a problem. I got my hands on last year's exams and they're cheap as shit. C'mon, I could do it like Maxi. We skip the boring classes, come here for the finals, rock the boat and then go back to Seattle. Boom, solution found!"

"But Max was just an exception," Ryan remarked, "Principal Hargrove accepted this deal because of the incident with Jasmine Graves."

"Oh c'mon, there has to be a freakin' way!" now Chloe shouted, almost losing it.

"And why don't you just finish Junior High first and spend your upcoming holidays in Seattle?" was her Mom's simple answer, earning an agreeing comment from Max's parents, yet only a negation by Chloe.

"Nu-uh! No can do! Maxi stays with me or I'm gonna freak! And Mom, you know that I suck at school if Max isn't around."

"I-I think the easiest way is that I stay here," Max joined in on the discussion shyly, "I-I mean, it worked before and…"

"It always ended up with you being hurt," Vanessa interrupted her, "Maxine, me and your Dad need a break from being worried all the time. This is why we want you in Seattle for the next months. And Chloe…" She sighed loudly, almost a bit tired of all the talking, "…if you really wanna stay with us you can do this, but your Mom's right. Finishing school's very important."

"Van, I really appreciate your concern, but Maxi's way more important to me!"

With a loud sigh, Joyce got up, picked up the phone and dialed a number, drawing everybody's attention on her.

"Who are you calling?" Chloe asked with a frown, speaking out what everyone was thinking.

"I'm calling Dr. Mortensen, maybe he knows a way to satisfy your stubbornness."

* * *

' _Hmm…decisions, decisions…'_ thought Chloe as she gazed at the pile of various magazines, comics and books on her bed, not knowing which one she should take with her.

"Hey Chlo, are you ready? My parents wanna leave soon!" chimed Max's voice as she entered her girlfriend's room, "What's taking you so long anyway?"

"Ugh, I've got too much stuff! I just don't know what I should leave here."

"Oh, I could help you with that," replied Max as she pulled the hentai magazine out of the stack, holding it front of Chloe with her thumb and index finger, "You'll definitely not taking this piece of smut to Seattle!"

"Why not?!" the blonde retorted with disappointment, now snapping the mag out of her girlfriend's hands.

"Because I don't want this disgusting thing in my room!"

"Fiiiine!" moaned Chloe in annoy, throwing it back on the bed, "But the old Max liked it."

"I'm not the old Max anymore, Chlo! I'm…I…" For a moment her voice failed, making Chloe to hug her in an instant, knowing that she just hit a wound spot.

"I'm sorry, Maxi! I didn't mean to…"

"I know," the freckled girl sighed, backing away a bit, "Sometimes this stupid mess is confusing as hell for me, too."

Planting a soothing kiss on her lips first, Chloe took Max in for another hug. "Maybe it's the best to leave this shit behind for some time."

"Yeah, I think that, too."

Eventually, Chloe baked away with a sigh, grabbed some random, not smutty comic from the stack and stuffed it into her backpack. "C'mon, let's not let your folks wait any longer or else I'll never hear the end of it and lose any last bit of sympathy I still have with 'em."

"Don't worry, Chlo," Max said, giving her girlfriend a peck on the cheek, "They still like you. Just give them some time to cope all this messed up stuff."

"Yeah…" she sighed, "I'm so glad that Doc Mortensen played along and reported to Hargrove that moving with you to Seattle would be some kind of a PTSD therapy…which it is…kinda…sorta…"

"Max! Chloe! Hurry up, we need to go!" chimed Vanessa's voice from downstairs. After exchanging one last kiss, Chloe grabbed her backpack and Max took her duffle bag. Both went downstairs and loaded Chloe's belongings into the Caulfield's car. Then came the time to say goodbye.

Although Chloe was entirely happy to stay with Max, a wave of deep melancholy flooded her mind as she realized that she would leave her Mom behind for quite some time, only with a short break during the finals. As mother and daughter stood face-to-face, the young girl lacked any words, instead tears emerged from her eyes. And as her lips began to tremble, Joyce took the now sobbing girl into a tight embrace, rocking her softly.

"Sssh, sweetie-pie, it's okay!" Joyce spoke with a soothing voice, brushing over her daughter's wet cheek, "You're so brave! Go your way. Be happy with Max. Make her happy."

"But…but what about you? You'll be all alone here."

"I've David now to watch over me, munchkin. We both even talked about that he could move in. Of course only if you're fine with it?"

As Chloe gave her Mom an agreeing nod, the tall woman took her daughter into another tight embrace, thanking her numerous times.

After Chloe and Joyce had parted, David Madsen approached the young girl, who was still wiping away the wetness from her face. The tall man reached Chloe his hand to say goodbye.

"Chloe," he spoke, "I wish you and Max the best! Take care and stay out of trouble, because I won't be around this time!"

At first, being offended by this patronizing tone, Chloe's mood changed rapidly as David added a smile and a wink to his sentence. Instead of shaking his hand, she pulled him in for a short hug.

"Thanks for everything, David! Take care of my Mom!"

"Will do, Chloe!" he replied and then parted. In the meantime, Max had already said her goodbyes to Joyce and was now doing the same with David. Then the two girls embarked the car.

"Ready, girls?" asked Vanessa, immediately receiving an answer by Max and Chloe.

"Ready, Mom!"

"Just punch it, Ryan!"

As the vehicle began to move, Chloe glimpsed one last time at her waving Mom, David right at her side and her house, before leaving it behind. As soon as her home was out of sight, Chloe felt a new wave of melancholy, which disappeared in an instant as she felt a soft touch on her shoulder, turned around and looked at a warm smiling Max. Her entire being filled with love, she tenderly grabbed her girlfriend's hand, closed in and planted a soft kiss on her lips.

"I love you, Maxi!" she whispered.

"I love you, too!" was Max's answer.

"Forever!"

"And Ever!"

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Surprise, surprise! This was the last chapter for this story, but not for the series. Since 80% of my stories are more or less written on improvisation the decision came relative abruptly. But I think it's the right choice, since Max and Chloe are now entering a new stage of their life.  
**

 **As I remarked in the last chapter of Rewound-Visions, I plan to split this entire series into 3 to 4 separate stories. Well, two more to go.**

 **Thanks again for reading this story and for the numerous Reviews!**

 **See ya!**


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